Forecourt’s licence suspended for 3 months after surprise immigration visit

A petrol station’s alcohol licence has been suspended for three months after the counter was left unattended during a surprise immigration enforcement visit.

The Home Office had been given a tip off there were illegal workers at Palmarsh Garage on Dymchurch Road in Hythe and made a visit on August 5 2021.

During their visit officers found the petrol station unattended with no one behind the counter.

When officers asked customers whether they had seen anyone serving, one said they could see a male worker walking away with a pint of milk.

Officers called the man who then started running. A chase ensued but ultimately he wasn’t caught.

A next door neighbour and owner of Minty’s Motors, Andrew Quinn, then shut the shop nearly half hour after officers had arrived.

Immigration enforcement officer Justin Simpson then asked the council to revoke the garage’s alcohol licence as the premise was unattended.

At a licensing committee on Monday the owner of the garage, Arunthavarajah Suntharangam, claimed his son was operating the premises when his wife had to go to hospital because of her pregnancy.

This left the counter unattended while the Home Office were visiting and left a customer unable to pay for their petrol.

He also said he didn’t know the individual who was running away.

However councillors were left puzzled as to why the shop was unattended to, with Cllr Jennifer Hollingsbee describing the incident as “quite coincidental”.

She said: “It seems to me extremely concerning that the garage was unattended to.

“You talk about respecting and abiding by the law, to leave a garage with no one serving, when immigration officers are there is very disturbing to me.

“It seems quite coincidental when immigration are visiting the premises there wasn’t anyone physically there.

“According to immigration officers, there was no one there until the tenant had been asked to go there”.

Cllr David Wimble was also sceptical: “Why would you run away? That’s the strange thing.

“Leaving a shop empty, it’s something that shouldn’t be encouraged.

“If you’re serving behind the counter and there’s a customer getting petrol, even if you need to shut the garage, surely you’re going to let that person finish?

“I take into consideration the person’s wife who was pregnant, to get to a hospital could take an hour and a half at least, so another two minutes to finish the transaction seems quite reasonable.”

Mr Suntharangam did apologise for the incident but said someone was closing the garage: “Next door is my tenant, and my son told him to close the shop.

“He was busy running his own shop, so it took him a little time to go there and close the shop.

“I totally understand concerns. I’ve just spent £5,000 on CCTV. It is unfortunate that this happened, it wasn’t supposed to happen but unfortunate things do happen.”

However, councillors were unimpressed and questioned why the neighbour who shut the garage, Mr Quinn, hadn’t given a witness statement.

After a lengthy deliberation, the panel stripped the station of its alcohol licence for three months, and added two conditions to their licence.

This included upgrading the garage’s CCTV so it would be accessible for up to 28 days and that a log book will be kept of workers at the premises.

However when the panel announced the licence suspension, Mr Suntharangam called the decision “disappointing” and claimed he would try to appeal the decision.