Raids on illegal workers in Leamington and Kenilworth

EIGHT illegal workers have been caught working at businesses in Leamington and Kenilworth.

The UK Border Agency swooped on Bombay Tandoori Restaurant in Regent Street, Leamington, on January 5, sealing the exits before questioning staff and checking their immigration status. Two illegal workers were identified, from Bangladesh, who had overstayed their visas. They were arrested and taken into immigration custody.

On January 17 another two Bangladeshi men were caught working illegally at Sunum Balti House in Abbey End, Kenilworth.

And on January 19 officers arrested four members of staff at Platinum Hand Car Wash on Rugby Road in Cubbington. One Albanian national admitted he had entered the country illegally while the other three – who initially claimed to be from different countries – were found to have false identity cards and later confirmed they too were Albanians.

The UK Border Agency said it was now taking action to remove all of the illegal workers from the country as soon as possible.

All three businesses were served with potential fines of up to £10,000 per illegal worker. These fines will have to be paid unless the businesses can prove that they took sufficient steps to confirm the right to work of their staff, such as checking passports.

Paula Burton, from the UK Border Agency’s Warwickshire immigration team, said: “We are cracking down on companies that employ illegal workers and fail to carry out proper checks on passports and other identity documents.

“Any business that takes on a foreign national without permission to work is breaking the law and faces a heavy fine and possible prosecution.”

Employers unsure of the steps they need to take to avoid employing illegal workers can visit http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/employers or they can call the UK Border Agency’s Employers Helpline on 0300 123 4699.