Six foreign nationals have been caught illegally working in Loughborough by our officers.
Acting on intelligence, our officers carried out a simultaneous swoop on three businesses in Warwick Way, Loughborough on 21 June at 1815. The officers sealed all exits before interviewing the workers and checking identity documents.
At the Bay Leaf restaurant they arrested a 24-year-old Bangladeshi man who had a fake British passport.
At the Koi Oriental restaurant a 34-year-old Chinese man, and a 33-year-old Chinese woman were caught – both were failed asylum seekers.
At the Pit Stop car wash a 20-year-old Iranian man was found working illegally. He was another failed asylum seeker.
On 15 June our officers visited the Koh-i-Noor restaurant in Nottingham Road, Loughborough at 1815.
They caught two Bangladeshi men illegally working – a 26-year-old who entered the UK illegally and a 29-year-old who had overstayed his visa.
At 2045 on the same day officers moved on to Castle Pizzas takeaway in the Barron, Castle Donington. A 34-year-old Pakistani man was found to be illegally working.
We are now taking steps to remove all the illegal workers from the UK as soon as possible.
All five businesses were issued with on-the-spot penalty notices for employing illegal workers and may now face a fine of up to £10,000 per illegal worker.
To avoid heavy fines, the businesses must prove to us that they carried out the correct pre-employment checks.
Phil Dyer, assistant director, UK Border Agency said:
‘Every week our officers visit businesses across the East Midlands pulling the plug on the illegal jobs which lure illegal immigrants to come to the UK.
‘Illegal working is unfair on honest employers who recruit staff with the right to work in the UK and who pay them a proper salary.
‘We will continue to support those companies who seek to comply with the law. But bosses that don’t play by the rules will get struck off our register, lose the right to recruit staff from outside Europe, face on the spot fines and could potentially end up in jail.
‘There are strict rules about which foreign nationals can get a job in the UK and businesses have a clear responsibility to carry out the right checks.’