Three employees have been found to be working at a takeaway in Scotland in breach of UK immigration law.
The individuals, all from China, were discovered by a UK Border Agency (UKBA) raid on Fortune Palace on St Stephen's Road in Saltash earlier this month (January 12th).
A woman and two men were arrested as they attempted to flee the premises, and their motivation for attempted escape was soon uncovered: they had all stayed in the country illegally following the expiration of their UK visas.
The two men are due to be removed from the UK over the course of the next few weeks, but the woman has an outstanding immigration claim for which she is being examined before being removed.
However, Fortune Palace's problems may have just began as the establishment is facing a fine of up to £30,000 for hiring workers without the correct UK visas. This charge – which equates to £10,000 for each worker – can be negotiated in the takeaway is able to prove that the correct pre-employment checks were carried out on the individuals.
Richard Taylor, of the UKBA local immigration team in the south west, commented: “We carry out operations like these frequently and we continue to have success targeting employers who use illegal workers.
“Illegal working has a serious impact on communities, undermining legitimate businesses and denying job opportunities to those who are genuinely allowed to work.”