Licence holder grilled over opening hours

A Brighton takeaway that repeatedly stayed open after its permitted licensing hours has been fined £500.

Necip Caglayan, premises license holder of the Golden Grill takeaway at 5, Pool Valley, was fined £150 with £350 costs and £20 victim’s surcharge for allowing the premises to stay open well into the early hours, despite repeated warnings.

The council’s licensing team wrote to the previous licence holders and premises manager back in 2012 after police were called to a fight at the Brighton takeaway at quarter to four in the morning.

The opening hours of the premises are Sunday to Thursday, 11.30am to 12.30am and 11.30am to 3am Friday and Saturday, with permission to sell late night refreshments (not alcohol) from 11pm to 12.30am (Monday to Thursday) and 11pm to 3am (Friday and Saturday).

Warning letters were also issued in August 2012 after two more occasions when the premises remained open after hours.

Last autumn the council received a complaint that Golden Grill was regularly staying open beyond its permitted hours and police licensing officers also witnessed after hours trading.

The premises was visited by both the police and council’s licensing officers and numerous letters were sent reminding the premises license holder of the permitted opening times.

Councillor Stephanie Powell, chair of the city’s licensing committee, said: “By frequently staying open into the early hours, this premises caused a great deal of nuisance to neighbours. The premise licence holder consistently ignored warnings from the council and the police, so we took the case to court, using our powers under the Licensing Act to protect the local community.”

Mr Caglayan admitted breaching the licensing conditions and said he had problems with closing times because of queues of people but had now put in place extra security.

The prosecution was brought under the Licensing Act 2003 (unauthorised licensable activities) at Brighton Magistrates on 16 January 2014.