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Illegal workers caught in Shrewsbury
09 November 2009
Three illegal immigrants have been caught working in Shrewsbury by UK Border Agency officers. Acting on intelligence, immigration officers swooped on Efes Kebab Shop, Castle Foregate at 1620 on Saturday.
We are working hard to pull the plug on the illegal jobs which lure illegal immigrants to come to the UK in the first place. Gail Adams, Regional Director, UK Border Agency
As they entered the takeaway shop, officers saw two workers running towards the back of the shop. They were caught hiding in a locker storing cabbages.
Officers sealed all exits before questioning the workers and checking their immigration status.
The suspected illegal immigrants at first denied working at the shop but when they were shown CCTV footage of them working behind the counter they admitted that they were indeed working. They had taken off their workwear as soon as immigration officers entered the shop and had thrown their clothes in a sink.
Both of the workers were identified as failed asylum seekers from Turkey and were bailed under strict reporting conditions whilst the UK Border Agency takes steps to remove them from the country as soon as possible.
The business was issued with an on-the-spot penalty notice for employing illegal workers and may now face a fine of up to £20,000.
Before the visit to the kebab shop, UK Border Agency officers caught a male Iranian illegal immigrant working at a car wash run by a company called Hands On in the car park of Tesco, Cattle Market, Battlefield Road, Shrewsbury.
Seven Bulgarian nationals working at the car wash - six men and one woman - were also questioned by immigration officers.
Although Bulgaria is in the European Union, there are restrictions on the type of employment that Bulgarians are eligible for. The UK Border Agency is therefore carrying out enquiries to establish whether the Bulgarians have the right to work in the United Kingdom.
To avoid a heavy fine, both businesses must prove to the UK Border Agency that they carried out the correct right-to-work checks for employing workers from outside the European Union.
Gail Adams, UK Border Agency regional director, said:
'We are working hard to pull the plug on the illegal jobs which lure illegal immigrants to come to the UK in the first place.
'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.
'Employers who 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.'
The immigration visits to the two Shrewsbury businesses form part of a national crackdown on rogue employers by the UK Border Agency.
A tough new civil penalty system was brought in last year 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.
Guidance for employers on preventing illegal working can be found on the UK Border Agency website, www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/employers or by calling the UK Border Agency Employers Helpline on 0845 010 6677.
Anyone who has information about suspected illegal immigrants in Shrewsbury should contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 where anonymity can be assured.