Overview
- Immigration Enforcement’s Criminal and Financial Investigations unit carried out coordinated raids in east London Wednesday, leading to two arrests linked to alleged coaching of false LGBT asylum claims.
- Officers detained a woman in her late 40s on suspicion of unlawfully providing immigration services under section 91 of the Immigration and Asylum Act and a man in his early 20s on suspicion of fraud, with both held for questioning.
- The BBC’s April undercover footage showed advisers offering packages costing up to £7,000 with staged nightclub photos, supporting letters and medical notes, and it captured attendees at an LGBT event saying most were not gay.
- Immigration Minister Mike Tapp warned the government will pursue advisers giving “dodgy advice,” and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said proven fraud would bring refused claims, loss of support and deportation.
- Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp called the response insufficient, while legal experts said such scams undermine trust and make it harder for genuine LGBT refugees to prove who they are.