Rat-riddled curry takeaway owner banned from running any other food business after court hears of catalogue of issues
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Sunderland City Council’s environmental health officers inspected Curry Village, in Front Street, Chilton Moor, following reports staff been throwing food waste into the yard.
They uncovered evidence of a substantial rat infection, with droppings under the food preparation area and signs they had brushed against the grease-covered wall as they walked along a cable from a fridge, sparking an immediate call out to pest control specialists.
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Hide AdSouth Tyneside Magistrates’ Court heard during a series of follow-up visits, an officer stepped on a live rat in the upstairs flat, with many holes found where the rodents could access the building.
The work surfaces and walls were dirty, with the floor covered in food debris and, as rats are incontinent, the court was told they would have been urinating on the ground.
In the fridge, sauces and ingredients were found stored in unclean containers.
The overgrown yard was littered with food, with concerns over an uncovered manhole and holes in the bins.
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Hide AdNow owner Jakaria Ahmed has admitted six charges of failing to comply with EU provisions on food safety and hygiene dating back to May 2019.
They were linked to cleanliness, keeping the premises in good repair, protecting food from contamination and therefore fit for consumption, failing to ensure pest control was in place and ensuring staff were supervised and trained in food hygiene.
While it was agreed with Ahmed the business would stop trading straight away, they had found no sign cleaning had taken place during subsequent checks and the owner and his wife told officers they would be handing back the building keys to the landlord.
When later asked in interview why there was an issue, the 49-year-old owner said it had been Ramadan, so cleaning was only being carried out fortnightly.
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Hide AdHe said he had never seen evidence of rats, mice, smear marks or gnawing on the furniture when they were put to him, leaving inspectors with “little confidence” the takeaway would be operated safely.
Tony Southwick, prosecuting for the council, said: “The officers commented it would have been obvious to anyone entering these premises it was dirty and had a rat problem.
"That was evident simply by the amount of droppings that were observed on the floor.”
As a result of the charges, Ahmed, from James Street in Elswick, Newcastle, has been given a Food Hygiene Probation Order, banning him from managing a food business.
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Hide AdIt is limitless in time, but he can apply for it to be lifted once it has been in place for more than six months.
He was also ordered to pay a fine, costs and victim surcharge totalling £2,447.
Richard Copsey, mitigating, said the dad-of-three had worked since arriving in the UK 20 years ago and now works as a Tandoori chef, with Curry Village previously given two-star hygiene ratings.
He said Ahmed had been “naive” and said: “We are not talking about a long period of time where standards slipped.
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Hide Ad"It was Ramadan in May 2019 and he says that’s how things got bad and it was in a terrace of houses which were not in the best condition.
"He is extremely sorry for what happened.”