Immigration raid at Hastings take away

Staff at the Balti Hut, in Queens Road, were questioned by officers in relation to their immigration status.

Two men from Bangladesh, aged 19 and 34, were arrested for overstaying their visas.

Both have been detained, pending removal from the country.

A third man, aged 38 and also from Bangladesh, was found to have no permission to work in the UK.

He was not arrested, due to an outstanding immigration application under consideration by the Home Office, but was escorted from the premises by officers.

Balti Hut was served a notice warning the restaurant it was liable for a financial penalty of up to £20,000 per illegal worker found unless evidence is provided that they carried out legally required right to work checks, such as seeing a passport or a Home Office document confirming permission to work.

Assistant director Richard Lederle, from the Kent & Sussex Immigration Enforcement team, said: “These successful operations reflect our ongoing work to identify people abusing the UK’s immigration system.

“All of our operations are intelligence led and I would encourage people with detailed and specific information about illegal immigration to contact us.

“Using illegal labour is not victimless. It cheats the taxpayer, undercuts honest businesses and means legitimate job seekers are denied employment opportunities. It also exploits some of society’s most vulnerable people.

“Employers who do not carry out the simple checks to ensure their staff have the right to work in the UK will face the consequences.”

For more information on right to work checks visit https://www.gov.uk/check-job-applicant-right-to-work

Employers with questions about checking a job applicant’s right to work in the UK can call the Immigration Enforcement’s 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 concerns about illegal working or non-compliant employers can report this to the Home Office online at www.gov.uk/report-immigration-crime

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