A Malaysian man is facing deportation after being arrested when immigration enforcement officers swooped on an Amblecote restaurant.

Officers acting on intelligence visited the Ruby Cantonese Restaurant, in Wollaston Road, where they arrested an 18-year-old man who was believed to have overstayed his visa. The man was detained - pending removal from the UK - after staff were questioned about whether they had the right to live and work in the UK.

Officers carried out the operation, at around 5.30pm on Friday November 4th, simultaneously with a visit to another Ruby Cantonese Restaurant in Leamington Spa where they arrested a 20-year-old Chinese woman who was found to have entered the UK illegally and who was also detained pending removal from the UK.

Cash was also seized under the Proceeds of Crime Act which was suspected to be the proceeds of illegal working. An application will now be made to the courts to request forfeiture of the money, which - if successful - will see the funds transferred to the public purse.

The businesses were also served with a notice warning a penalty of up to £20,000 per illegal worker employed will be imposed unless they can demonstrate appropriate right to work checks were carried out, such as seeing a passport or Home Office document confirming permission to work. Carol Scarr, of the West Midlands Immigration Enforcement team, said:

“Businesses are expected to comply with the law and ensure their employees have the right to work in the UK by carrying out the correct checks. Those who do not do so should expect a visit and a heavy financial penalty. Using illegal labour is not victimless.

"It cheats the taxpayer, undercuts honest businesses and cheats legitimate job seekers of employment opportunities. It also exploits some of society’s most vulnerable people. All of our operations are intelligence led and I would encourage people with detailed and specific information about illegal immigration to contact us.”