Raided

Published 14 Jul 2010 09:30

A POPULAR Indian restaurant and take-away could face a hefty fine after immigration police swooped on the building.

Officers from the UK Border Agency stormed the Ajuba on Friday afternoon - arresting two men aged 25 and 34.

Cops hit the building just before 5pm and the two men from India were led from the restaurant in handcuffs.

They now face deportation.

The Ajuba was served with a Civil Penalty Notice for allegedly employing the illegal workers and could be forced to pay a £20,000 fine.

A passing motorist was sitting at the traffic lights across from the restaurant when he saw the officers leading one of the men out of the building. He said: "I was stopped at a red light and I saw a man being brought out in handcuffs and he had two police on either side of him.

"He must have been working in the kitchen because he still had an apron on.

"I couldn't stop staring - I've bought a couple of takeaways from that place before and wouldn't have thought anything illegal was going on."The officers targeted the Ajuba, which sits on Main Road in Elderslie after receiving intelligence from the public and other sources.

The two men will have to report regularly to the UK Border Agency while steps are taken to obtain travel documents.

They will then be removed from the UK as quickly as possible.

The owner of the Ajuba will also have to provide evidence that legally-required checks were carried out before giving the men jobs.

If this can't be proved then a fine of up to £20,000 will be imposed.

Phil Taylor, regional director of the UK Border Agency in Scotland and Northern Ireland, said: "Where there are skills shortages people can apply to come here legitimately.

"If people ignore our immigration laws, we will find them and remove them from the country.

"Any employer who takes on foreign nationals without permission to work in the UK is breaking the law, undermining law-abiding businesses and faces fines of up to £10,000 per illegal employee."

The Ajuba is the second business to be hit in recent weeks.

At the end of May three employees, of Chinese and Malaysian origin, were arrested in the Q Gardens on the Thorn Brae in Johnstone.

It is believed they were working illegally and the takeaway was served with a civil penalty notice.

Advice for employers about how to employ migrant workers legally is available from the UK Border Agency on http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/employers/

Anyone who suspects that illegal workers are being employed at a business can contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 where anonymity can be assured.

The owner of the Ajuba declined to comment when approached by the Gazette.

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This article appeared in The Gazette 14 Jul 10

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