OXFORD City Council enabled a slum landlord to be given a lighter sentence because it failed to inform magistrates he had previous convictions.

Imran Hussain Ali, 34, of Cowley Road, was given credit for his “previous good character” when he was sentenced for nine offences under the Housing Act at Oxford Magistrates’ Court late last month.

But the council’s prosecution team did not say he had been convicted of similar offences three months before.

Ali was originally fined £9,266 in December after pleading guilty to 11 offences under the Housing Act 2004.

It followed complaints about the state of 394 Cowley Road which he owns, but does not live in.

There was no working fire detector, the electrics were in a poor condition, the bathroom was in poor repair and cockroaches were spotted throughout the property, believed to be housing at least 10 tenants.

Following the court hearing, the city council stripped Ali of his licence to manage a house in multiple occupation (HMO).

He found himself back in court on March 22, and pleaded guilty to poorly managing a different HMO, which presented a risk to the health and safety of the occupants.

The court heard that when officers visited the property at 22 Bullingdon Road, East Oxford, on August 30 last year to issue an HMO licence, they found several breaches.

There were no notices with the landlord’s details, kitchen tiles were broken, the cooker was in an unsafe place, and they also found loose wires on the first and second floor landing.

Ali pleaded guilty to nine offences and was fined a total of £2,350, with £200 costs awarded to the council.

The court gave credit to Ali for his guilty plea and took into account his previous good character. However, city council staff had failed to provide details about his previous convictions, and a magistrates’ court spokesman said the maximum fine could have been £5,000.

Speaking after the hearing, Green city councillor St Mary’s ward in East Oxford Craig Simmons said: “It shows a lack of joined-up thinking. It allows landlords to get away with a pattern of bad behaviour. I will take this up with executive member for housing Scott Seamons and officers to try to ensure it does not happen again.”

City council spokesman Louisa Dean said: “Based on previous experience it was decided that the officer who led the case on this occasion would not be required in court.

“Mr Ali is no longer a fit and proper person to hold an HMO licence and if he still owns properties in Oxford and wants to rent them out he will need to find a suitable person to hold the licences on his behalf.”

RENTED SECTOR TARGETED

ROGUE landlords in Oxford have been fined more than £55,000 as part of a crackdown on HMOs by the city council.


Since new rules on houses of multiple occupation came into force in January 2011, 34 landlords have been successfully prosecuted or issued a formal caution.


In total, landlords have been ordered to pay £55,834 in fines.


They include Mohammed Abbas, 38, of Barns Road, Cowley, who was sentenced in February for a range of offences for a semi-detached property in Barns Road.


Abbas admitted six offences dated May 28, 2012, including failing to have a licence for an HMO, failing to protect occupants from injury because of structural conditions and not keeping the house in good decorative order.


He admitted another offence of failing to provide an electrical installation certificate.
Abbas was fined a total of £1,250 for the seven offences, and told to pay £300 prosecution costs and a £15 victim surcharge.


In December, Rizwan Sultan, of Rymers Lane, was fined £8,908 after pleading guilty to 13 offences relating to 24 Wilkins Road.


The same month Barbur Ali, 29, of Lytton Road, was fined £5,250 after pleading guilty to 10 offences under the Housing Act 2004 relating to 33 Warwick Street.