Man sues runaway bride

An Italian groom left waiting at the alter by his runaway bride is now suing her for €500,000.

The man, identified only as Riccardo, was standing at the alter when his fiancée's brother told him she was in love with another man and had changed her mind about the wedding.

The 32-year-old man has lodged court papers claiming emotional and material damage after booking a villa outside Rome to hold the reception in, a honeymoon on a Pacific Island, and refurbishing his bachelor apartment to house his fiancée.