IMMIGRATION officials have made arrests at two businesses in Worcester following an operation.

Acting on intelligence, immigration enforcement officers, working on behalf of the Home Office, visited the D&K Nail Salon in Lowesmoor and the Arishana restaurant, Canada Way in Lower Wick last Saturday, (October 8).

At 3pm they visited the salon and officers arrested two Vietnamese men, aged 19 and 39, who the Home Office says entered the UK illegally.

Both men have been ordered to report regularly to the Home Office while their cases are progressed.

At around 5.30pm officers visited the restaurant and arrested three men, aged 27, 38 and 45 from Bangladesh, for overstaying their visas.

The Home Office says all three were detained while steps are taken to remove them from the UK.

Both businesses have been served with a notice warning that a financial penalty of up to £20,000 per illegal worker employed will be imposed, unless they can demonstrate that appropriate right to work checks were carried out - such as seeing a passport or Home Office document confirming permission to work.

This is a potential total of up to £40,000 for D&K Nails and up to £60,000 for Arishana restaurant.

The owner of D&K Nails, who did not give her name, told the Worcester News she had not been issued with a notice warning, described it as "unfair", and "would be fighting this".

The manager of the Arishana restaurant, Sam Ahmed, said on employing the staff he was given the passports they used to enter the country, and said he had "no knowledge they were not entitled to work in this country".

"I have been targeted by the Home Office several times," Mr Ahmed said.

"All I am trying to do is provide a service to my local community.

"I have been fully co-operative with the Home Office's investigation."

Carol Scarr, of the West Midlands Immigration Enforcement team, said: “These successful visits are typical of the work our enforcement teams carry out across the region.

"Employers have a legal responsibility to ensure their staff are entitled to work in the UK. There are serious consequences for those who ignore this.

“Illegal working cheats the taxpayer, depriving vital public services like schools and hospitals of funds, it undercuts honest businesses and it cheats legitimate job seekers of employment opportunities.

"It also exploits some of society’s most vulnerable people.

“We are determined to crack down on businesses who choose not to play by the rules.”

Anyone with information about suspected immigration abuse can report it at gov.uk/report-immigration-crime or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Information to help employers carry out checks to prevent illegal working can be found at gov.uk/government/collections/employers-illegal-working-penalties.