Four men have been jailed for their part in a UK immigration scam, it has been revealed.
Two Sri Lankan nationals, a 29-year-old and a 21-year-old from Watford and a 26-year-old from Harrow were sentenced after pleading guilty to charges of conspiracy to facilitate a breach of the UK's immigration laws and of possessing fraudulent documents.
The charge related to the fact that the individuals had all sourced fake passports and residence permits in order to illegally secure employment in the UK.
The documents were found after officers based at Heathrow Airport intercepted a parcel containing fake passports and resident permits addressed to one of the offenders living in Watford.
Andy Radcliffe, an inspector with the UK Border Agency, commented: "Hussain was supplying fake documents to help others stay in the UK illegally and secure work to which they were not entitled. They were high quality fakes and prospective employers would have had no idea that what they were looking at was anything other than legitimate."
He added that the group clearly only had one intention: "To take employment opportunities away from genuine jobseekers."
Not only were the individuals putting themselves at risk, businesses that were conned by their papers and failed to conduct the necessary extra checks could find themselves at risk of paying a fine for employing an illegal worker if caught.