Six restaurant directors banned after avoiding illegal worker fines
The directors of six restaurants have received lengthy bans after failing to pay fines for employing illegal workers.
They ran separate restaurant businesses, but all put their operations into liquidation to avoid paying considerable fines.
Some 20 illegal workers were found by Home Office Immigration Enforcement to be employed at restaurants based in Spalding, King's Lynn, London, Bristol, Redhill and Horsham in 2013 and 2014. As a result the restaurants were fined a total of £135,000 after separate investigations, but all went into liquidation with the fines left unpaid.
Nine people have since been banned from being company directors or involved in the management of companies for between six and eight years after investigations by the Insolvency Service.
Vicky Bagnall, director of investigation and enforcement, said: "Employing illegal workers is not a victimless crime. These directors sought an unfair advantage over their competitors by employing people under the radar who were not entitled to work legally in the UK.
"It is not acceptable to use the insolvency process to escape legal sanctions. This action is a warning to other employers that if you flout the law, there will be consequences."
The disqualified directors are:
Akhtar Zaman, the sole registered director of Rajkumar restaurant, Horsham, West Sussex, who avoided a fine of £30,000 after six illegal workers were found by border agency officials. He was disqualified for eight years.
Irina Kandel Sapkota, the director of Everest Spice, Redhill, Surrey, who had been fined £30,000 and went into liquidation on 10 February 2015 owing £45,985. She was disqualified for six years.
Sitar Ahmed, the director of Ahmed Tandoori restaurant, Wimbledon, south London, was found to be employing one illegal worker and fined £5,000. He was disqualified for six years.
Mohammed Liton Miah, the director of India Gate restaurant, Kings Lynn, Norfolk, has been disqualified for seven years for failing to pay a £10,000 fine for two illegal workers.
Kahir Uddin Chowdhury and Bedar Chowdhury, the directors of Cinnamon resturant, Bristol, had been fined £10,000 for four illegal workers. Both were disqualified for six years.
Abu Rasel and Fazlul Haque, the directors of Tulip Tandoori, Spalding, Lincolnshire, were disqualified for six years having failed to pay a £20,000 fine for employing four illegal workers.
