A Hayes woman has been arrested as part of a national visa fraud operation.

The 51-year old was arrested at an address in North Hyde Road along with nine other people across London, Manchester and Doncaster.

The arrests were made as part of an investigation into suspected abuse of the student visa route.

The suspected fraud operation used bogus colleges to allow the entry of non-EU nationals to the UK using the Tier 4 student visa route.

Officers from Immigration Enforcement Criminal Investigations, supported by the National Crime Agency (NCA), entered a number of addresses at 6:30am on Wednesday (July 22).

Five men and two women, which included the woman from Hayes and also a 42-year-old man arrested at an address in Lowry Lodge, in Harrow, were amongst those arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to facilitate a breach of immigration law and money laundering.

A further three people were arrested at an address in East Ham, London, after checks revealed they were in the UK illegally.

Officers also seized a significant amount of cash during the operation.

Investigators are examining whether there has been abuse of the Confirmation of Acceptance to Study (CAS) process. CAS numbers are issued by colleges to non-EU nationals applying to study in the UK.

The bogus colleges linked to the investigation have all already had their sponsor licenses revoked following investigations by the Home Office.

Dave Magrath, from Home Office Immigration Enforcement Criminal Investigations, said: “We are determined to crack down on all forms of immigration crime.

“These arrests are part of an ongoing investigation into the suspected abuse of the student visa system.

“Our investigations will continue with the evidence we have seized.”

The seven arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to facilitate a breach of immigration law and money laundering have been detained and are waiting to be interviewed by investigators.

The three immigration offenders are detained until their removal from the UK.

Anyone with information about suspected immigration abuse can contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 anonymously or visit the Crimestoppers website.