Operation Nets Four Illegals In Sydney Suburbs
Media Release - DPS 39/2003
Four people have been found working illegally following immigration status checks of taxi drivers and local workers in some Sydney suburbs, the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs (DIMIA) confirmed today.
The joint operation, undertaken by officers from DIMIA, Centrelink, the NSW Department of Transport and the NSW Police Service, took place in Ashfield, Campsie, Lakemba and Roselands early this morning.
During the operation, Immigration officers located four illegal male workers, three unlawful and one in breach of his visa conditions. Two of the men were from Pakistan, one from India and one from Egypt.
Three of the men were employed as taxi drivers and one man was a trolley collector at a local shopping centre in Roselands.
As a result, all four men were detained and will been transferred to the Villawood Immigration Detention Centre in Sydney where they will remain until their removal from Australia, as required by law.
DIMIA officers, often with assistance from state police, make regular visits to workplaces in many parts of Australia, including restaurants, farms, shops, offices, factories and brothels, in an effort to detect and locate people who are in the country illegally or who are working illegally. DIMIA may also issue warning notices to employers or labour suppliers who are found to have employed illegal workers.
In 2001-02 financial year, the Department located 17,307 overstayers
and people breaching visa conditions around Australia. The number
of locations has increased significantly since 2000-01, when 14,238
overstayers and people breaching visa conditions were found.
19 June 2003
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