FOUR people who were living in an illegal shared house with no smoke alarms, a missing fire door and mouldy walls have seen their landlord prosecuted and ordered to pay more than £4,600 in fines and costs.

Oxford City Council led the prosecution of Mohammed Waqas Anwar, who was landlord of the property in Ridgefield Road, East Oxford.

City council environmental health officers first visited the property on November 18, last year.

They found broken smoke alarms, a missing fire door and locks on doors which they said could prevent occupants escaping in the event of a fire.

They also said the house was in general poor repair, with damaged bathroom tiles, a “filthy shower” and mouldy walls.

They also found four people living in the house, but Anwar did not have a licence to rent the home as a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO).

An HMO is defined as a property rented by at least three people who are not from one “household”, such as a family, but share facilities like the bathroom and kitchen.

Anwar, 35, who lives in Oxford Road, Kidlington, answered the charges at Oxford Magistrates’ Court on Monday.

He pleaded guilty to being in control of an unlicensed HMO and received a fine of £2,000 for failing to obtain a licence.

He also pleaded guilty to five breaches of the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006 and received a separate fine of £1,250.

In addition, the magistrates ordered him to pay the council’s full costs of £1,426 for bringing the case to court. The conviction brings the number of HMO cases the city council has successfully prosecuted this year to 11.

Anwar pleaded not guilty to a further seven breaches of the HMO management regulations, including failing to maintain fire exits, fixtures and fittings and the garden.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) offered no evidence on those charges and Anwar was acquitted.

Council leader Bob Price said the council did what it could to make sure all HMOs were properly licensed at maintained.

He said: “Since introducing the HMO licensing scheme in 2011 we have licensed nearly 3,500 properties in the city. Landlords have invested more than £3.2m to improve standards and provide better housing for residents.”

The council is planning to extend the scheme for a further five years.

Mr Price urged unlicensed landlords to contact the council, adding: “We will of course take action against landlords who fail to comply with the legal requirements to license and maintain HMOs to an acceptable and safe standard.”