A landlord has been sentenced for a ‘flagrant disregard of the law’ relating to a property that was rented out in Cardiff.
Mohammed Abdul Kowsor Choudhury, from Cardiff, and his company, Pine Best Ltd, were fined a total of £54,000, with a further £10,000 in costs, when the case was heard at Cardiff Magistrates’ Court.
The rented property is a three storey Victorian house with a commercial unit on the ground floor, but despite only having planning permission for six self-contained flats, some 11 self-contained flats were found at the property.
The prosecutions relating to this property date back to March 2018, when council officers discovered 11 flats. An Emergency Prohibition Order was made for each flat due to the extremely poor fire safety precautions, which meant that the properties could no longer be occupied, as they were deemed to be unsafe.
In 2019, South Wales Fire & Rescue Service prosecuted Choudhury for failure to comply with an enforcement notice to carry out essential work on these flats. He was fined £50,000, ordered to pay £10,000 in costs and was given a suspended prison sentence.
In October 2022, reports were received that the flats were being rented out again and the works required by the Emergency Prohibition Ordershad not been carried out.
A further investigation was launched, followed by several hearings in court. Finally in July 2024, Choudhury and his company pleaded guilty to all the offences in July 2024 and the case was heard at Cardiff Magistrates Court this month.
The court was advised of Choudhury’s previous conviction for this property, as well as convictions for theft, dishonesty and assault, and the fact that he had continued to re-let flats at the property as they became vacant.
In sentencing, District Judge Christopher James described the business as “a vehicle created by the defendant for the purpose of presenting an enterprise of legitimacy” and characterised the financial accounts as “questionable”. The District Judge made is clear that he deemed Choudhury’s failure to comply with the enforcement notices as a deliberate attempt to “gain profit from people that were desperate for housing, with rents in the region of £600 a month per flat.”
The Judge described Choudhury as “flagrantly and deliberately ignoring legislation and legal requirement in relation to these properties.”
A council spokesperson: “This property has been a significant concern for many years now and hopefully Mr Choudhury now understands what he has to do to ensure that he can rent his property out legally, in line with all legislation required.
“The majority of private sector landlords provide a good service to their tenants, but unfortunately there are some that don’t have any regard at all. Unfortunately, its landlords like Mr Choudhury who, as the judge said, flagrantly ignore legislation and bring the sector into disrepute.”
