A TAKEAWAY owner faces a £20,000 fine after immigration officials swooped on a Shepley restaurant and discovered suspected illegal workers.
Acting on intelligence, officers targeted the Team Bo Chinese restaurant on Abbey Road.
Two Malaysian males, aged 29 and 53, were questioned and subsequently arrested.
Both men are suspected of being illegal entrants to the UK and of working illegally.
They are currently being detained while further investigations are carried out.
A spokesman for the UK Border Agency said they would be taking steps to have the men deported if it was found they have entered the country illegally.
The owner of the takeaway is also now facing a fine of £10,000 per man if he cannot prove the correct right-to-work checks were carried out.
Steve Lamb, Regional Operations Director of the UK Border Agency in the North East, Yorkshire and the Humber, said: “We will not tolerate illegal working, in Shepley or anywhere else.
“It undercuts British wages, exploits vulnerable workers and hurts legitimate law-abiding businesses.
“As long as there are illegal jobs, the UK will be an attractive place for illegal immigrants.
“Operations like these target those who try and flout our rules and we will seek to remove them from the UK.”
Last month UK Border Agency agents busted a suspected marriage scam, arresting brides and grooms at Hartshead Moor services and in Cleckheaton.
Six people from the Czech Republic, Nigeria and Liberia have now been charged with conspiracy to facilitate illegal immigration.
Two Chinese takeaway workers were also arrested at Wok-in Wok-Out, Market Street, Cleckheaton.
Two Chinese nationals, a 41-year-old male and a 38-year-old female were detained for suspected illegal entry.
Anyone who suspects that illegal workers are being employed at a business can contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 where anonymity can be assured.
