Croydon Council has secured a court-issued premises closure order against a rogue garage linked to dangerous and untaxed vehicles, as part of the zero-tolerance crackdown on antisocial behaviour.
The two-month closure, which was issued at Croydon Magistrates’ Court on 6 May, means the premises at 187 Parchmore Road, Thornton Heath was shut immediately. The action follows recent enforcement activity that saw unsafe and untaxed vehicles seized and destroyed in a coordinated operation led by the Council and its partners.
Executive Mayor, Jason Perry visited the site during the operation, spoke with residents and promised further action as part of his zero-tolerance approach to antisocial behaviour.
The garage had become a significant source of concern for the local community owing to persistent antisocial behaviour linked to its owner, Mr Mohammed Chaudhry. This included obstructing the highway and pavement with unroadworthy and dangerous vehicles, carrying out vehicle repairs on the public road, damaging paving and tarmac, and causing repeated noise nuisance.
There were also reports of drains being blocked with used oil and other materials, alongside incidents of verbal abuse, threatening and intimidating behaviour, traffic obstruction, and ongoing disturbance and distress to residents, members of the public and other road users.
Mr Chaudhry was issued with several warnings and was twice served with Community Protection Notices, as well as Fixed Penalty Notices, which he failed to comply with or pay.
The closure order has been granted to protect residents and disrupt ongoing unlawful practices. It was issued under powers designed to tackle persistent anti-social behaviour and criminal activity linked to specific premises.
Closure orders are subject to legal time limits set by the courts and breaching the order is a criminal offence and will result in further enforcement action.
“This closure order sends a clear message that we are taking a zero-tolerance approach to antisocial behaviour and businesses that put our residents at risk or undermine our neighbourhoods.
“We have already taken decisive action to remove dangerous and untaxed vehicles from our streets, and now we are going further by shutting down the source of this activity.
“Croydon is committed to keeping our communities safe, and maintaining neighbourhoods residents can be proud to call home.
We will continue to use all the powers available to us to clamp down on illegal operations and antisocial behaviour.”
Jason Perry, Executive Mayor of Croydon
Residents are encouraged to report concerns about illegal garages, abandoned vehicles or antisocial behaviour to the council. Find out more on our website.
