Fourteen undocumented foreign workers from Thailand and the executive who hired them at a fish factory were arrested for allegedly seeking illegal employment and violating immigration laws, respectively, marine police said Friday.
The Boryeong Marine Police Agency said they raided the fish factory in Boryeong, South Chungcheong Province, following a tip-off of suspected “illegal hiring of unauthorized migrant workers.”
Authorities reportedly confirmed that the 14 Thai nationals all had entered the country illegally, of which seven of them overstayed their 90-day entry permit.
Boryeong marine police officers arrest 14 undocumented foreign workers from Thailand at a fish factory in Boryeong, South Chungcheong Province, on Friday. (BMPA-Yonhap)
The 45-year-old employer, the president of a local fishing cooperative, was indicted on the charge of allegedly violating the nation’s Immigration Control Act by offering them jobs at the Daejeon Immigration Office, according to Boryeong police.
According to South Korea’s immigration laws, persons who hire illegal aliens can face up to three years in prison or up to 20 million won ($18,500) in court fines.
Police said they plan to expand the scope of the investigation into the large-scale illegal hiring practices of migrant workers.
By Catherine Chung (
cec82@heraldcorp.com)