5 people have been detained pending removal from the United Kingdom and a business faces fines of up to £80,000 following immigration raids on 2 restaurants in Shanklin on Friday evening.
Acting on intelligence, Immigration Enforcement officers visited Coriander in the High Street and Jasmine Indian Cuisine in Regent Street on Friday (5th August) at around 18:00.
At the Coriander restaurant, 4 men from Bangladesh were arrested after they were found to have no right to work in the UK. The men, aged 25, 30, 33 and 37, had overstayed their visit visas. They have been transferred to immigration detention pending removal from the UK.
The Home Office have confirmed that the business has been served with a notice warning that a financial penalty of up to £20,000 per illegal worker found will be imposed unless the employer can demonstrate that appropriate right to work document checks were carried out, such as seeing a passport or Home Office document. This means that Coriander faces potential fines of up to £80,000.
At Jasmine Indian Cuisine in Regent Street, a 25-year-old man from Bangladesh was arrested for overstaying his visit visa and has also been detained pending removal from the UK. No action is to be taken against the business as the employer has been able to provide evidence that the required pre-employment checks had been carried out.
Carla Johnson, Assistant Director for the South Central Immigration Enforcement Team said:
“Illegal working is not a victimless crime. It cheats the taxpayer, meaning less money is available for vital public services, undercuts honest employers and denies legitimate job seekers employment opportunities.
“Our Immigration Enforcement teams carry out regular operations to tackle abuse of the system. We take reports of illegal working very seriously and I would urge members of the public with specific information about suspected immigration abuse to report it to us”.
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Employers with questions about checking a job applicant’s right to work in the UK can call the dedicated support line for advice on 0300 123 4699. They can also use the Employers’ Checking Service for checks on migrants with outstanding immigration applications and appeals at www.gov.uk/employee-immigration-employment-status.
Anyone with information about illegal working or non-compliant employers should report this to the Home Office at www.gov.uk/report-immigration-crime or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
