14 June 2010

A Norwich newsagent has been forced to close after all three members of staff were arrested by UK Border Agency officers.

Officers from our local immigration team for Norfolk carried out an intelligence-led visit at St Johns News in St Johns Close shortly after 1400 on Tuesday 8 June.

Immigration checks revealed that the two members of staff, plus the newspaper delivery person who had just returned from his rounds, were all in the UK illegally.

The three men – aged 46, 45 and 35 – were all from Sri Lanka and had overstayed their visas.

A further illegal immigrant – a 27-year-old failed asylum seeker from India – was found in the accommodation above the shop.

All four men were arrested and have been placed in detention while arrangements are made for their removal from the UK.

St Johns News now faces a fine of up to £30,000 – £10,000 per illegal worker – unless it can prove that it carried out the correct pre-employment checks before employing the men.

Inspector Colin Daulby from the local immigration team said:

‘If people want to work in the UK, there are ways they can apply to come here legitimately.

‘If they decide to ignore immigration laws, we will find them and look to remove them from the country.

‘Anyone in Norfolk who employs a foreign national without permission to work is breaking the law and undermining law-abiding businesses. Employers have a legal responsibility to carry out the right checks.’

The civil penalty system is in operation to provide a fast and effective way of tackling bosses who fail to carry out proper checks on workers from outside Europe. A fine of up to £10,000 per worker can be imposed for every illegal worker found at a business.

In 2009 our officers carried out 900 illegal working enforcement operations across the Midlands and East region.

Anyone who suspects that illegal workers are being employed in Norfolk should contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, where anonymity can be assured.

11 June 2010

A bogus groom has been jailed at Leeds Crown Court for 12 months after plotting to stage a sham marriage.

Just days before the planned wedding, 23-year-old Shola Bansi Yaya – a Nigerian illegal immigrant – and his fake bride Adejumoke Ariyeye, 24, were arrested as they arrived at church for a meeting with the vicar. The marriage was stopped after an investigation by the UK Border Agency immigration crime team revealed that fake documents were being used in the marriage plans.

Yaya and Ariyeye, together with 20-year-old Portuguese accomplice Maria Da Grava Correia Tavares Da Silva, were sentenced today for arranging the fake marriage that would have enabled Yaya to apply to take up permanent residence in the UK. Yaya and Da Silva had already pleaded guilty, while Ariyeye, a Nigerian who was in the country legally, was found guilty at court last month.

Yaya was jailed for 12 months. Da Silva and Ariyeye both received suspended 12-month sentences.

The court heard how Yaya, who entered the UK illegally in 2003, approached the vicar at St Peter’s Church, Morley, Leeds in October last year to make arrangements to marry Da Silva. However, his marriage application aroused the suspicion of the Registrar to the Bishop and Diocese of Wakefield, who reported the marriage request to the UK Border Agency.

Officers from our immigration crime team launched an investigation into the planned marriage and discovered that many of the details and documents supplied by Yaya were falsified, including his UK address and immigration status. The court also heard that the woman Yaya had taken to meet the vicar was not Da Silva, but was Ariyeye who was fraudulently using Da Silva’s Portuguese passport.

A wedding date was set for Saturday 12 December 2009, but on Tuesday 8 December a staged meeting with the vicar was arranged by the UK Border Agency. When Yaya and Ariyeye (claiming to be Da Silva) arrived at the church, they were arrested by officers from the immigration crime team. Further investigations by the team enabled them to trace Da Silva to an address in London, where she was arrested on 20 January this year. She admitted becoming involved in the scam after she had been offered £500 in exchange for her identity documents.

In interview, Yaya claimed he was introduced to Da Silva in London and then paid £3,000 to arrange a sham marriage to the Portuguese woman. He claimed that Da Silva had subsequently refused to take part in the marriage unless she was given more money, at which point it was arranged for Ariyeye to act as a stand-in.

Jeremy Oppenheim, regional director for the UK Border Agency, said:

‘The UK Border Agency successfully thwarted this attempt to gain illegal residency in the UK by means of a sham marriage. The case demonstrates our determination to take action against those who try to falsify marriages in order to gain entry to the UK.

‘We have specialist teams of immigration officers and police working side by side to investigate and prosecute cases just like this and ensuring people are not able to benefit from breaking the UK’s immigration laws.’

Detective Inspector Don Newlove of the UK Border Agency immigration crime team said:

‘This is one of a number of successful prosecutions into sham marriages carried out by the UK Border Agency North East, Yorkshire and Humberside immigration crime team.

‘This clearly demonstrates the effectiveness of police and immigration officers working together to tackle immigration crime.’

The government plans for identity cards for British citizens to be scrapped within 100 days it was announced today.

The National Identity Register, the database which contains the biographic and biometric fingerprint data of card holders, would also be destroyed by the first piece of legislation introduced to Parliament by the coalition government.

Home Secretary Theresa May said: Continue reading “Identity cards and national identity register to be scrapped” »

The UK Border Agency has today issued a warning over bogus job offers targeting foreign nationals seeking work in the UK. Several cases have been reported of bogus offers where the names and titles of real UK Border Agency officials are used to add authenticity to apparent email scams.

Rob Yeldham, director of communications advised:

‘My name has been used in several apparent attempts to scam foreign professionals looking for work in the UK. We have referred cases to our security unit, but at this stage it is unclear what the nature of the scam is, or where in the world it is based. The best advice is to be careful of any unsolicited offers.’ Continue reading “Bogus job offers warning” »

new set of measures will be introduced in a phased approach to tighten the criteria on student Tier 4 visa applications.

In summary, the following changes will come into effect on 3 March 2010: Continue reading “Changes to Tier 4 student visa applications from 3 March 2010” »

From 22 February 2010, any applicant who applies to study in the UK under Tier 4 of the points-based system must have a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) from their prospective sponsor.

UK Border Agency will accept applications that are supported solely by visa letters if they have been lodged and paid for on or before 21 February 2010. Any applications that are paid for on or after 22 February 2010 and are not supported by a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies will be refused. Continue reading “Changes to student applications from 22 February 2010” »

Foreign students from outside Europe wanting to come to the UK to study will be required to meet stricter entry criteria, the Home Secretary announced today.

The new regulations will ensure that students studying below degree level have a limited ability to work in the UK, and that their dependants cannot work here at all.

It will be even harder for bogus students, whose only aim is to work in the UK, to come into the country.

The government will implement plans to introduce a points test by 2011 for those who wish to earn British citizenship.

The new measures for students include: Continue reading “Tougher rules for foreign students” »

from 1 February 2010,  new applications under the Tier 4 student route of the points-based system will not be accepted in any at the following visa application centres:

• North India – New Delhi, Jalandhar and Chandigarh
• Bangladesh - Dhaka, Sylhet and Chittagong
• Nepal - Kathmandu

The head of the points-based system at the UK Border Agency  said: Continue reading “Suspension of Tier 4 student applications (UK) in North India, Nepal and Bangladesh” »

Alongside the launch of the sponsorship management system for Tier 4 of the points-based system on 5 October 2009, the UK Border Agency has announced new policy for Tier 4 sponsors and would-be students.

The new policy centres on two main areas: Continue reading “Two new policy announcements for Tier 4 of the points-based system” »

From 22 February 2010, any student who applies by post or at one of our public enquiry offices, to study in the UK under Tier 4 of the points-based system must possess a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) from their prospective sponsor.

You will not be able to apply under Tier 4 using a visa letter from that date, even if the visa letter was issued before 22 February 2010.

Until 21 February 2010, you can continue to apply under Tier 4 using a visa letter, even if your course of study will start after 22 February 2010.