Grotto Bay Hotel manager JP Martens yesterday pleaded guilty on behalf of the hotel to illegally employing two US citizens.The hotel were charged last month with five counts of employing non-Bermudians without the permission of the Minister of Home Affairs, but the Crown offered no evidence in three of the counts after Mr Martens offered guilty pleas on two counts.Prosecutor Cindy Clarke told Magistrates’ Court that at around 10am on April 3, the Department of Home Affairs received information that unauthorised people were working at the Bailey’s Bay hotel.When officials arrived on site they found a number of large artificial plants in the hotel’s dining room. As they looked on, they saw William Peck, a US citizen, move one of the artificial plants to a pillar.The officials spoke to Mr Martens, who said he was unaware that permission was needed for Mr Peck and a second US citizen, Samuel Rosenberg.“Mr Rosenberg was the interior designer and admitted he was requested to freshen up the main building for the upcoming season,” Ms Clarke said.“He came to consult on the placement and installation by hotel staff and tradesmen. The project was falling behind on time and he started to lend a helping hand and instructed the fellow consultants to help if possible.”The next day Department officials received a report that the men were again working at the hotel and returned to the site to find artificial plants scattered throughout the lobby.Questioned, Mr Martens said that he had contacted the Ministry at 9am that morning to ask permission to have the men work. However at 4.50pm that day, the hotel learned permission had been refused.Lawyer Christopher Swan told the court that the incident was a simple misunderstanding, and Mr Martens apologises profusely for the incident. He also noted that as soon as the mistake was pointed out efforts were made to get permission for the workers.“I think they have all learned a lesson in this regard,” Mr Swan said.However, Senior Magistrate Archibald Warner said that ignorance of the law is not an excuse, and that it’s incumbent on Mr Martens to know the immigration requirements.“Even if they were consulting, they would need permission,” Mr Warner said. “There is no distinction between the physical labour and the fact they did the other consulting work.”Mr Warner said the issue of non-Bermudians working without work permits is a particular area of public interest. As a result, he said the legislation must be enforced and similar offences must be discouraged.Noting that the maximum penalty is a fine of $5,000 and a term of imprisonment, Mr Warner fined Grotto Bay $4,000 for each of the two offences.Mr Martens declined the opportunity to comment on the matter, while the Ministry of Home Affairs as of press time has not responded to a request for comment.However, Shadow Home Affairs Minister Walter Roban said the sentence shows that tougher legislation is needed."The courts can only work within the laws we pass in Parliament,” he said. “We've heard the proposed penalties bandied about by the OBA and as can be seen with this sentence.“To confirm their pledge to they need to consider even tougher measures with higher penalties than proposed. If not some businesses my see their proposed penalties as merely an expense of doing business rather than a deterrent."