Landlord sees £112k confiscated under POCA after planning breaches

A landlord convicted three times for breaching planning enforcement notices has seen £112,500 in rent confiscated under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.

Piara Singh Sehajpal was also fined £21,000 – or £7,000 for each offence – and ordered to pay £9,973 towards the prosecution costs of the London Borough of Richmond.

The defendant had turned three houses into a total of 16 flats, but without planning permission. He admitted three offences before magistrates in 2010.

In March 2011, Sehajpal also admitted breaching enforcement notices issued by the council under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, which had given him six months to return the properties to single homes.

The case was transferred to Kingston Crown Court for sentencing and a confiscation order. At the hearing prosecutors told Judge Kent that the defendant had rented rooms at around £800 per month each.

Sehajpal has been ordered to pay the £143,000 within 12 months or face 18 months’ jail.

Cllr Virginia Morris, Richmond Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment and Planning, said: “This is the best outcome we could have hoped for. People may think planning is frustrating and time consuming, but planning laws must be complied with. This case absolutely proves planning enforcement prosecutions do have teeth and can make a difference when required, especially when coupled with the new Confiscation Orders created by the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.

“Neighbours have no doubt been concerned about how these houses have been used and I am pleased we can now explain to them what has been happening and how it has been dealt with. It will also serve as a very sharp reminder to other landlords thinking they can try to dodge the law. Planning rules exist for a reason and we will always do our utmost to ensure they are upheld.”

In a statement Sehajpal – 57 of Honeysuckle Close, Iver, Buckinghamshire – claimed the offences were “minor breaches of planning law” and they were a “matter of naivety” on his part.

Earlier this month a letting company was ordered to stump up more than £12,000 in fines, costs and repaid rent over the state of one of its unlicensed properties, after the London Borough of Newham pursued a compensation order under POCA.

Sumal and Sons Properties, of Stamford Hill, had been found guilty in their absence at Stratford Magistrates’ Court of failing to license a two-bedroom house in Manor Park. The property was located in a Neighbourhood Improvement Zone.