The Lord Chancellor and Lord Chief Justice have suspended the immigration judges at the centre of a sex blackmail case involving a Brazilian cleaner while the Office for Judicial Complaints carries out a preliminary investigation.
A statement said: “The Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice strongly believe that the public must have confidence in judges, and take seriously any allegations against them of misconduct.”
Immigration judge Mohammed Ilyas Khan had a relationship with his Brazilian cleaner, Roselane Driza, as well as with another immigration judge, known only Ms J.
Details of the relationship emerged in court following the trial of Driza for blackmail in September. Driza threatened to expose the judges for employing her illegally.
The investigation is likely to focus on this point. “In particular the Lord Chancellor and Lord Chief Justice are concerned about the allegation that Mr Khan and Ms J employed Ms Driza as a cleaner when she was ineligible to work in this country,” the statement added.
