A LANDLORD who crammed at least 15 tenants into a dirty County Road guesthouse has been fined more than £16,000.

Javaid Lone, of County Road, pleaded guilty to 13 breaches of housing regulations at a hearing at Swindon Magistrates' Court yesterday.

The court heard 59-year-old Lone had allowed at least 15 tenants to rent rooms in his County View guest  property, County Road.

He even moved one tenant into a converted bathroom while putting up an illegal structure in the living room to provide yet another bedroom.

Lone had converted numbers 31 and 33 County Road into a single property with multiple bed-sitting rooms and shared kitchens and bathrooms.

But a Swindon Borough Council inspection discovered a string of violations in the property including failure to provide adequate fire exits, covered smoke alarms, dangerous electrical wiring and unhygienic communal spaces.

One kitchen was also out of use leaving only one other dirty kitchen for all 15 tenants to use.

After the inspection in late 2014 revealed multiple breaches Lone began work with the council to bring the property up to scratch.

In June this year, new breaches emerged such as tissue stuffed down toilets, rat droppings in the only usable  kitchen and an outstanding £9,598 electricity bill which caused the supply to be cut to the property.

When the council attempted to contact Lone about the bill, it was discovered that he was in America. The council and his daughter were  left to foot half of the bill.

Kirsty Real, prosecuting for the council, said Lone took advantage of the tenants’ naivety.

“These people were of multiple nationalities and in a visit one woman could not understand the council officer’s questions, and as a result were vulnerable due to this,” she said.

“The council inspector saw rat droppings in the kitchen, the kitchen was in a complete state of disrepair.

“He tried to cram in as many residents as possible and the effects of that were all around the property.

“There were tenants living in the rooms who also had another bed in the room, so there was subletting involved there.

“There was a significant fire and safety risk in this property and the tenants could have suffered serious harm in the event of a fire.”

Lone’s defence said the landlord had become overwhelmed as a result with a flood of new tenants at a time when we he was working towards fixing the problems.

The court heard Lone was the sole breadwinner and only earned £9,000 a year from the property.

Chairman of the bench, Paul Sample ordered Lone to pay £16,650 in fines and £1,500 court costs.

A spokesperson for Swindon Borough Council said: “We hope this case sends a strong message to rogue landlords, who fail to fulfil their legal obligations to tenants to make their properties fit, safe and healthy places to live.

"Tenants of larger houses of multiple occupation like this are particularly vulnerable because they may be less able to seek alternative accommodation and therefore endure squalid conditions. Our enforcement work focuses on this area, as such properties can be riddled with hazards, ranging from rat infestations to inadequate fire exits and faulty electrical installations.

“In this particular instance the property was in an appalling state when officers visited over the summer and measures were taken to remove immediate dangers.

"We will continue to work with the landlord, or any manager appointed to look after the property, to further improve its condition. Whilst there are many responsible landlords in Swindon, this illustrates the serious consequences for those who are negligent in providing well-maintained, satisfactory premises.”

Anyone living in a poorly maintained or overcrowded home can alert the council on 01793 4445500.