Sha Tin Magistrates' Court has sentenced a decoration company proprietor to10 months' jail for employing Mainland visitors .

Lam Kin-wai, 52, pleaded guilty to nine counts of being the employer of a person not lawfully employable. He was sentenced to 10 months' jail on each charge, but sentences will run concurrently.

In April, Immigration officers raided a Sham Shui Po flat and found illegal workers living there. Officers learned they were working for Lam, who was the flat's tenant.

The illegal workers have pleaded guilty to breaching conditions of stay, and were earlier sentenced to two months to 15 months' jail.

The Immigration Department warns it is an offence to employ people who are not lawfully employable. The maximum penalty is a fine of $350,000 and three years' jail.

Visitors are not permitted to take up employment in Hong Kong, whether paid or unpaid, without the prior permission of the Director of Immigration. Offenders are liable to a maximum fine of $50,000 and two years' jail.