Court calls time on bar which broke Covid rules
LICENCE SUSPENDED FOR THREE MONTHS FOR SERVING BOOZE DURING LOCKDOWN
A BAR has had its licence suspended for three months - and its co-manager banned - after he breached Covid-19 rules and asked police to ‘smell his breath’ during lockdown.
Tameside’s licensing panel has taken enforcement action against Top End Bar in Ashton-under-Lyne after it was found to be serving alcohol when all bars and pubs had been ordered to close.
On April 3, GMP licensing officer Pc Martin Thorley and the council’s licensing manager Mike Robinson called in at the Stamford Street bar after noticing the front gate was open. They found Sanjay Mistry, the co-owner, along with two other men inside.
There was a bottle of cider on the bar - and what appeared to officers to be the dregs of a pint of bitter.
Pc Thorley said: “I told him of my suspicions that the beer glass on the bar had recently been drank out of. Mistry denied this and stated ‘the Bulmer’s is mine. I’m drinking it, here, smell my breath.’
Mr Robinson told the panel that after reviewing the CCTV from the bar, it showed Mr Mistry had been drinking with one of the men for at least ‘an hour’ before they visited.
It appeared from the footage that the man had paid for his drinks.’
Mr Mistry said the two men in the pub were a business associate, Nigel Thompson, and the tenant of the flat above the bar.
The tenant had come to pay his rent and drop off a joint of meat, while Mr Thompson said they were meeting to discuss accessing the government’s coronavirus business support.
Mr Mistry admitted it had been an error of judgement to hold the meeting in the pub, but denied that it was a case of being open and serving customers.
Committee chairman David Sweeton said: “Clearly the premises was open.”
He added that they were including a condition of the licence that Sanjay Mistry is ‘banned immediately’ from the premises.