Pair arrested for working illegally 
at village store

A LANCING business could face up to £40,000 in fines after illegal workers were found by Home Office Immigration Enforcement officers last week.
GV ofThe Premier Convenience Store, which has been fined for employing immigrant workers.Sompting 170215. Picture: Liz Pearce 
LP1500025 SUS-150217-175554008GV ofThe Premier Convenience Store, which has been fined for employing immigrant workers.Sompting 170215. Picture: Liz Pearce 
LP1500025 SUS-150217-175554008
GV ofThe Premier Convenience Store, which has been fined for employing immigrant workers.Sompting 170215. Picture: Liz Pearce LP1500025 SUS-150217-175554008

Acting on intelligence, officers visited the Premier convenience store in Sompting Road at 4.10pm on Thursday.

Staff were questioned to find out whether they had the right to live and work in the UK. Officers arrested two Indian men, aged 26 and 28, for working illegally after both were found to have overstayed their visas. Several thousand pounds in cash was also seized.

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The younger man was detained pending removal from the UK, while the older man must report to the Home Office regularly while his case is progressed.

The business was served with a notice warning that a financial penalty of up to £20,000 per illegal worker found will be imposed unless the employer can demonstrate that appropriate right to work document checks were carried out.

If proof is not provided, this is a potential total of up to £40,000.

Assistant director Richard Lederle, from the Kent & Sussex Home Office immigration enforcement team, said: “This was a successful operation resulting in the arrest of two immigration offenders and the seizure of a significant amount of cash.

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“Businesses in Sussex involved in hiring those with no right to work should be in no doubt of our determination to tackle the problem.

“Illegal working cheats the taxpayer, undercuts honest employers and often exploits some of society’s most vulnerable people. I would urge people to report suspected immigration abuse to us.”

For more details, visit www.gov.uk/government/collections/employers-illegal-working-penalties.

People with information about suspected immigration abuse can contact www.
gov.uk/report-immigration-crime