The National Crime Squad (NCS) said the arrests followed a two-year inquiry into the alleged trafficking of Chinese men and Malaysian women into the UK.

The trio are suspected of working for criminals based in Malaysia.

One of those arrested is a Birmingham man, 57, suspected to be the group's UK leader. The other two men are from Blackpool and Accrington, Lancashire.

Newspaper adverts

The NCS said the suspect from Blackpool was 31-years-old and the Accrington man 39. The Birmingham man comes from the Sparkhill area of the city.

A spokesman said: "Our investigation started nearly two years ago and other people are still being sought.

"It is our belief that Malaysian-based criminals control this human trafficking operation and we have arrested the people who are working for them in this country.

Many of the illegal immigrants have been sent to work in Chinese restaurants and fast food outlets NCS spokesman

"We suspect the illegal immigrants answered adverts placed in Malaysian newspapers offering employment opportunities and have paid large sums of money to individuals to facilitate their travel and employment.

"They continued to be financially liable to these people once they had been put to work."

Officers believe the group used Kuala Lumpur Airport to fly people into Heathrow or Manchester.

"Although there may have been groups of between three and 24 arriving on any one flight, they often split up into smaller groups until they got safely through immigration," the spokesman continued.

"Many of the illegal immigrants have been sent to work in Chinese restaurants and fast food outlets in all the major cities, including London, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle, as well as in Wales and Scotland."

He added that more than 30 people had already been deported.