Spy Duo Aiding Immigrants on Life in UK test Ordered to Pay more Fines

This is Local London is reporting that two James Bond-esque spies have been ordered to pay fines of up to £100,000 or risk being sent back to prison. The duo, who used high-tech devices to aid people in passing immigration tests, have been ordered to pay the fees or face jail time.

Steven Lee, 37, and his partner Rong Yang, 29, were convicted of fraud when they used BMW computer equipment outside of Wimbledon Library to transmit the answers to potential resident candidates being given the Life in the UK test.

The duo was convicted in November of 2008 and have already served out an eight month prison term. In a post jail-time hearing held on December 22, Yang was ordered to pay back £70,000, and Lee an additional £30,000, both men were warned that failure to pay would result in additional jail time. The hearing took place at Kingston Crown Court.

The test which the men aided immigrants in cheating on is the final step in the process of becoming naturalized in the UK as a citizen. Once the test is completed successfully, candidates are able to apply for British passports. Authorities were originally tipped off by a pedestrian who had passed by the duo. It later came to light that they had been aiding Chinese nationals  by providing the answers to the test via earpieces and button-hole cameras.

The Life in The UK Test asks participants a series of multiple choice questions relating to day-to-day life in the UK as well as traditions of the country. The test is designed to allow candidates to show a basic command of the English language as well as general knowledge of the UK as a whole.