Shropshire Star

Four arrested in visas probe at Whitchurch Indian restaurant

Four Bangladeshi men working at a curry house in a Shropshire town centre have been arrested on suspicion of immigration offences.

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Home Office investigators arrested the men at Spice Heaven, in Station Road, Whitchurch, after being tipped off about their presence in the area.

Two of them, aged 22 and 27, face being deported after they were found to be working in breach of their visa conditions. They have both been detained in custody.

A further two men, aged 26 and 47, were found to have overstayed their visas and were ordered to report regularly to the Home Office while their cases are dealt with.

Officers visited the restaurant at about 6pm on Saturday, where staff were questioned to check if they had the right to live and work in the UK.

The curry house was served a notice warning that a civil penalty of up to £20,000 per illegal worker arrested could be imposed unless proof is provided that the correct right-to-work checks were carried out.

Bodrul Hoque, manager of Spice Heaven, said: "This is the third check we have received. The other two have been fine but with this one there were a few discrepancies with the paperwork."

Mary Halle, deputy director of Midlands Immigration Compliance and Enforcement Operations, said: "This is a warning to businesses either deliberately employing people with no right to work or failing to carry out the legally required checks on their staff.

"We will catch up with you and you should expect to face heavy financial penalties.

"Businesses using illegal labour are defrauding the taxpayer, undercutting genuine employers and denying legitimate job hunters work.

"We rely on intelligence from members of the public and I would urge people to report suspected illegal working to us."

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