Suspected illegal migrants 'living in car scrapyard'

The men were found living in mobile homes at a scrapyard in Oldham

BBC Photo of car scrapyard — The men were found living in mobile homes at a scrapyard in Oldham

Five men who were arrested in a crackdown on illegal immigration had been living and working in a car scrapyard for just £2.50 an hour, immigration officials have said.

The migrants were found sleeping in mobile homes and shipping containers at the site in Oldham, Greater Manchester, during a raid.

The men, aged between 34 and 50, were expected to be deported to their home countries of Lithuania and Malaysia.

They were found during a raid at a car salvage yard in the Watersheddings area of the town on Thursday morning.

Immigration inspector Charles Devereux said the men were being paid below the minimum wage

Charles Devereaux in the car scrapyard. He is wearing a high vis jacket and black top. — Immigration inspector Charles Devereux said the men were being paid below the minimum wage

It followed intelligence that foreign nationals had been working there for small amounts, living on site in mobile homes and cooking in converted shipping containers.

Immigration officials said they found bedding, rucksacks and personal belongings.

It was thought some of the migrants had overstayed their tourist visas, while others did not have the correct documents and were not entitled to work in the UK.

A shipping container had been used as a makeshift common room at the scrapyard

Home Office The inside of a shipping container with an old navy sofa, a pile of wooden boards, a makeshift table and car seats to sit at. — A shipping container had been used as a makeshift common room at the scrapyard

Charles Devereux, an inspector for immigration enforcement in north-west England, said: “We’ve encountered several foreign nationals in this raid. The converted cabins and shipping containers are very poor living conditions.

“It shows what can happen to illegal workers, how open they are to exploitation.

“Employers will expect the migrants to work unusually long hours and pay them below the minimum wage.”

The workers had been stripping down cars and selling on the parts

Inside a garage housing cars in the scrapyard. There are two classic style cars and a forklift truck. The warehouse otherwise appears fairly empty with fluorescent lights. — The workers had been stripping down cars and selling on the parts

Mr Devereux added: “The Home Office continues to take illegal working as an absolute priority.

“It’s so vital to prevent the scenes we’ve seen in terms of small boats and people taking terrible risks to come here to the UK – in many cases on a lie that’s sold by trafficking gangs and criminal organisations.”