A Pennsylvania man is accused of forging a judge’s signature on a divorce decree to fool the mother of his much-younger new girlfriend, according to court documents.

County detectives allege that 55-year-old Louis Craig Divido forged the signature of Judge Thomas Swope on a document to prove to his girlfriend’s mother that his marriage to another woman was over.

Divido offered the document as proof to the mother, who objected to her daughter’s dating a married man who was 27 years older.

Divido’s divorce is not final, investigators said.

“He wanted to utilize the document to resolve the problems he had in dating the complainant’s daughter,” said Robert Davis Gleason, Divido’s attorney. “He wanted to show that he was serious about the relationship.”

Investigators said Louis Divido went to a public library and printed out the legal document, and then signed the judge’s name.

“The commonwealth takes these crimes very seriously,” Assistant District Attorney Tamara Bernstein said.

“Lou certainly regrets the incident,” Gleason said. “He’s especially apologetic to Judge Swope and wishes to resolve it by an appropriate plea.”

Divido has a prior criminal record and is on the Pennsylvania sex offender registry.

Details for this story were provided by The Tribune-Democrat in Johnstown, Pa.