- Migrants charged up to £4,500 for fake gay asylum evidence
- Three arrested in Home Office raid in London
- More than 100 asylum claims under review
- Asylum fraud carries a maximum 10-year sentence
MIGRANTS were charged up to £4,500 for fabricated evidence to support fake gay asylum claims, according to the Home Office, which has arrested three people after a raid on a suspected criminal network.
The network is accused of selling staged photographs, fake letters and other documents to migrants pretending to be gay. The claims include dozens from Bangladeshi men who said they would fear for their lives if returned home, BBC reported.
"We've got some intelligence that they can provide fake letters and documents, and they could charge anywhere between £1,000 and £4,500," said Chris Foster, a regional lead for criminal investigations at the Home Office.
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Immigration enforcement officers arrested two people at addresses in London on Tuesday on suspicion of fraud and immigration offences, seizing phones, jewellery and thousands of pounds in cash. A third person was arrested on suspicion of being in the country illegally.
More than 100 asylum claims linked to the network are being reviewed. Foster said some of the fake applications would "undoubtedly" have been granted.
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He said the arrests related to claims connected to Apanjon, a Bangladeshi community LGBT organisation based in Whitechapel, east London, BBC reported. Immigration judges have previously criticised evidence from the group as unreliable.
The Home Office said Apanjon often vouched for men who claimed asylum on the basis of their sexuality only after earlier claims on political grounds had been refused.
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The arrests follow a BBC investigation in April that found advisers helping migrants pose as gay to win asylum.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said "those faking persecution are beneath contempt and mock real victims who need protection".
Asylum fraud carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
(With inputs from agencies)
