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Kent restaurant faces £30,000 fine
12 September 2013
A restaurant in Sheerness could be fined up to £30,000 following an operation by Home Office immigration enforcement.
Acting on intelligence, officers visited Masala Reef on Hove Street at 5.45pm on Friday 6 September. Individuals were questioned to check if they had the right to be in the UK.
Three men were arrested. Two Bangladeshi nationals, aged 26 and 31, had overstayed their visas while a 21-year-old Indian national was working in breach of his visa conditions.
All three men have been placed on immigration bail while steps are taken to remove them from the country.
The business was warned that a fine of up to £10,000 per illegal worker will be imposed unless they can prove the correct right-to-work checks were carried out.
Ceri Williams, from the Kent and Sussex Home Office immigration enforcement team, said:
'Our enforcement teams carry out operations like this almost every day in Kent and we have no intention of slowing down.
'These arrests are a stark warning to anyone who is in the UK illegally. We will catch up with you and you will face arrest, detention and removal from the country.
'If you are a business you must carry out the correct checks on your staff or you could end up with a heavy fine.'
To find out more about how to avoid employing illegal workers visit our page on preventing illegal working, or call the employer's helpline on 0300 123 4699.
Contact details for Home Office immigration teams in London and the South East can be found in the about us section of this website.
Anyone with information about suspected immigration abuse can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 or visit the Crimestoppers website.