Illegal workers have been arrested by Home Office immigration enforcement officers following operations at businesses in Andover and Basingstoke.

Acting on intelligence, officers visited Pearl River Chinese Restaurant, Union Street, Andover, and Pizza Go Go, Alencon Link, Basingstoke yesterday (Thursday 1 October).

Staff were questioned to establish whether they had the right to live and work in the UK.

Three were found to be working illegally.

Pearl River was visited at 10.10pm where a 33-year-old Chinese man was arrested after he was found to have overstayed his visit visa.

Two men were arrested at Pizza Go Go.

All three men were transferred to immigration detention pending removal from the UK.

The businesses will be served with notices warning that financial penalties of up to £20,000 per illegal worker arrested will be imposed unless the employer can demonstrate that appropriate right to work document checks were carried out, such as seeing a passport or Home Office document.

If proof is not provided, this is a potential total of up to £20,000 for Pearl River.

Assistant Director Carla Johnson, head of the South Central Home Office Immigration Enforcement team, said: “Our specialist teams conduct operations on a daily basis and anyone who is in the UK illegally faces arrest, detention and removal from the country.

“Illegal working defrauds the taxpayer, undercuts honest businesses and cheats legitimate job seekers out of employment opportunities.

“We rely on information from the public and I would urge people to report suspected immigration abuse to us.”

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

It includes a new quick answer right-to-work tool to help employers check if someone has the right to work in the UK.

People with information about suspected immigration abuse can contact https://www.gov.uk/report-immigration-crime or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.