By Eric White
A TILBURY pastor of a Grays church has been fined because he admitted his church had failed to tone down the noise it made.
Pastor Akinseye Iyun, 38, of Brunel Close, Tilbury, admitted that as the Pastor of the Celestial Church of Christ in Bridge Road, Grays, he was in breach of noise abatement notice, when he appeared at Basildon magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, 25 May.
The court heard Iyun and the church had been given noise nuisance advice before a noise abatement notice was served in the early hours of 31 January 2015 after a statutory noise nuisance was witnessed by Thurrock Council Environmental Protection officers.
The court was told most of the council’s advice visits were made during the weekend and out of hours, especially during last summer.
A breach of the notice was witnessed in October 2015 and a breach of notice letter was hand-posted in November, following further visits and numerous resident complaints about loud amplified music, particularly drumming and chanting over a speaker system.
Iyun was interviewed under caution in December, but complaints are still being made.
He was fined £230 with a £23 victim surcharge and Thurrock Council was awarded full costs of £988.50, totalling £1,241.50.
On Wednesday, magistrates considered exercising their power of seizure of all noise-making equipment, but did not do so, although Iyun was told that should he and the church be recalled to court for noise nuisance the matter would be taken more seriously.
Gavin Dennett, Thurrock Council’s environmental health and trading standards manager, said: “Our environmental protection officers are prepared for any further breaches of notice and will apply for a warrant and forfeiture of sound equipment if the noise nuisance is witnessed again.
“The peace and tranquillity of local people was being disturbed on a regular basis and this shows the council will act as and when necessary.
“The magistrates said of course he and his church were entitled to celebrate and to worship, but not in a way that disregards the local community and certainly not in breach of the noise abatement notice.
“As leader of the church he should make sensible arrangements that people can rest and enjoy their homes in the way he and his congregation would like to enjoy their church.”
