The father-of-two, who fell in love with the Ukrainian refugee living with his family, has agreed to stop contacting the mom of his kids as ordered by the court.
Tony Garnett, 29, decided to leave Lorna Garnett, his partner of eight years, for Sofiia Karkadym, 22, so they could start their new life together. The father was smitten by Karkadym barely two weeks after her arrival in the U.K., and they have since moved out of the family home while Tony's relationship with his ex-partner became strained.
The dad, however, had no problems with the court order to stop contacting his ex. He said that it does not make any difference since he hasn't been speaking to Lorna for some time.
"I just care about seeing my children," the father said, adding that the judge has also ordered Lorna to do the same and cease contact with Tony, per Daily Mail.
Tony quits his job to be Karkadym's carer
In his commitment to his new partner, Tony decided to scale back on his job so he could take care of Karkadym full-time. The young woman acquired an eye infection when she left Ukraine via Germany. According to Wales Online, Karkadym needs six months to fully recover as she has been left partially blind by the infection.
Tony runs his own security company and said he's okay to take a break from this work to focus on his partner. While taking care of Karkadym, Tony also plans to work on his music and has been gathering materials inspired by his love for her.
The father also said he wants to protect Karkadym from the online abuse as netizens have labeled her a homewrecker who should be deported. Tony defended that it was his choice to move out and live with Karkadym.
She has also spoken up to defend herself amid claims that she seduced Tony from Lorna. In a message on Instagram, the 22-year-old belied the rumors that she had stolen him. As with Tony's pronouncements, Karkadym said he made a "conscious and informed decision" to choose her over Lorna because he has "the right to be happy."
Karkadym applied to become a Ukraine refugee in London and sought a sponsor via Opora Homes in April. Tony saw her appeal online and offered his house. He worked it out with her by contacting her on social media because he claimed that the process from the government was too slow.
During her short stay with the family, Karkadym claimed that Lorna showed two sides and became suspicious of her closeness with Tony. She said this constant suspicion pushed her and Tony to be together.
Lorna kicked her out, but Tony said he would also leave. Later, Tony claimed that it was love at first sight for him.
Lorna hesitated about taking in a refugee
Meanwhile, Lorna said she had reservations about accepting a refugee into their house, but Tony was sure of it. Lorna acknowledged that it had been terrifying for the people of Ukraine, so she opened her eyes and rationalized that they were doing the right thing by putting a roof over someone's head.
However, Lorna said something was off with Karkadym from the start. She told herself that she was being irrational when she suspected that the refugee was trying to attract Tony, per The Sun.
The mom was devastated after Tony confessed he was in love with the refugee. Lorna never married Tony but changed her surname to Garnett when they had children.
Lorna said that she would not discourage anyone from taking in refugees because there is a real crisis in Ukraine. However, she's hoping no other family will go through a break-up like her family.
More than 54,000 Ukrainian refugees have moved to the U.K. since the war with Russia in February.
