A ROGUE landlord has been fined £12,000 after falling foul of Hounslow Council's crackdown on beds in sheds.

Daljit Singh Gill was taken to court by Hounslow Council after ignoring orders to stop using an outbuilding in Munster Avenue, Hounslow, as accommodation.

Gill, of Acton Lane, Chiswick, was first issued with an enforcement notice after council officers visited the property back in 2006. But when enforcement officers returned in March this year, they found two tenants living in the building, who were believed to be paying a total of £780 a month in rent.

The council warned him he would face prosecution if he failed to take action, but the warning went unheeded.

He admitted breaching the enforcement notice, and at Feltham Magistrates' Court on August 19 he was fined £12,000 and ordered to pay £997 costs and a £15 victim surcharge.

Councillor Steve Curran, Hounslow's cabinet member for planning, said: "Mr Gill’s complete disregard to our enforcement notice shows he puts profit above the safety of his tenants. There are clear rules and regulations for outbuildings that are there to protect residents, neighbours and the wider community, but Mr Gill didn't seem to think these applied to him. I'm glad the court has showed him how wrong this view is.

"We are working hard to tackle the problem of illegal outbuildings across the borough, and this case shows we won't hesitate to use the courts to remedy the situation."