Stamford shop Today's Express could have premises licence revoked after alleged discovery of illegal workers

A convenience store could lose its licence and face a fine of up to £60,000 after allegedly employing three illegal workers.

Police and immigration officers visited Today’s Express at 50 Kesteven Road in Stamford on March 12 following a tip-off.

They reportedly found an Indian man working behind the counter and a Sri Lankan man and woman in the flat upstairs.

In an interview with Home Office officials, the first man said he received just food and accommodation for stacking shelves and manning the till.

Although legally allowed to be in the country, he was barred from working due to his immigration status.

The Sri Lankan woman was awaiting the outcome of an asylum application but was similarly banned from working.

However, the Sri Lankan man was said to be in the country illegally and was arrested by police.

Papers made public ahead of a premises licence review hearing on Friday (July 3) reveal the owner, Arumugam Kalamohan, had also been through a similar review in relation to another shop, Today’s Express on Market Place in Grantham, in October 2018. This was also in connection with an alleged illegal worker.

Members of South Kesteven District Council’s Alcohol, Entertainment & Late Night Refreshment Licensing Committee will have a range of options available to them, from modifying the licence to revoking it completely.

Lincolnshire Police have urged councillors to take the latter option.

In representations to the committee, the force said: “Lincolnshire Police requests that the licensing sub-committee seriously consider a revocation of the premises licence.”

The reports to the council include one from Chief Constable Bill Skelly which details the visit made by police and immigration officers in March.

It states they found the Indian man working behind the counter, serving a customer and taking money. The team then found the Sri Lankan couple upstairs.

“As they were staying in what appeared to be staff accommodation above the store it was believed that the two individuals had also been working in the store,” the document states.

Immigration officers are now in the process of serving a civil penalty notice on the business in relation to the first man, with possible action to follow in relation to the Sri Lankan nationals. Fines are generally £20,000 per illegal worker.

Other breaches of the premises licence were also allegedly discovered, including failure to maintain incident logs or training records, and staff being unable to operate the CCTV camera system.