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The Immigration Department yesterday (March 25) arrested seven illegal workers and two people suspected to have employed them during a territory-wide anti-illegal worker operation codenamed "Twilight".
Operation "Twilight" began at 11am and ended at 9.30pm yesterday. Immigration Task Force officers raided 14 target locations in various districts including restaurants, an elderly home, retail shops, a commercial/residential unit under renovation/decoration and a flower plantation. In this operation, seven illegal workers and two employers were arrested. The illegal workers comprised five men and two women aged between 24 and 48. Among them, three were holders of recognisance forms, which prohibit employment. One man and one woman were suspected to be in possession of forged Hong Kong identity cards.
"It is an offence for illegal immigrants or people who are the subject of a removal order or a deportation order to take any employment or to establish or join in any business. Offenders are liable to a fine of $50,000 and imprisonment for three years," an Immigration Department spokesman said.
The spokesman also warned that it was an offence in law to use or possess a forged identity card. Offenders are liable to prosecution and a maximum penalty of a $100,000 fine and imprisonment for 10 years.
The spokesman also appealed to employers not to employ illegal workers, warning that it was an offence to employ people who were not lawfully employable. The maximum penalty is a fine of $350,000 and imprisonment for three years. To deter unlawful employment, the High Court laid down a sentencing guideline in 2004 reaffirming that it was a serious offence to employ someone who was not legally employable, and the employer of an illegal worker should be given an immediate custodial sentence.
Ends/Friday, March 26, 2010
Issued at HKT 15:41
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