Restaurant owners face £2.5million council bill in extractor fan row

A POPULAR Turkish restaurant is facing a crippling £2.5million confiscation order bill over an EXTRACTOR FAN.

Ahmet and Sahin Gok, the brothers who own Meze Mangal Restaurant, in Lewisham Way, are facing financial ruin because of a relentless council campaign against them.

Lewisham Council is chasing the pair for £2.5million after they failed to get planning permission for an extractor fan behind the restaurant.

Controversially, the council is using the Proceeds Of Crime Act – legislation originally intended for tackling organised crime – to try and recoup the money.

Sahin, 57, said: “It’s absolutely disgusting. We are being treated like drug dealers. And it’s all over an extractor fan.

“I don’t think we deserve it. I don’t know how they came up with that figure, £2.5million. Even the building is not worth that much. They can have it (the building) if it’s worth £2.5million, we are happy to leave.

**PICTURED: The Gok brothers with the extractor fan system behind them**

“We’ve got no money to pay for it. I’ve been working the last 40 years in this country and I’ve never seen that (sort of) money.

“The council should be supporting local businesses – not killing them. I think the council is just doing it for the money.”

Sahin claimed the only mistake he and his brother made was not knowing they needed planning permission for the extractor fan system, which they erected after a neighbour complained about smells coming from the restaurant.

He added: “When we put it up, the council was there. Then they told us (afterwards) we had to get planning permission. So we applied for it, didn’t get it, and then we appealed and didn’t get it. That’s how it all started.”

The brothers say they have been treated "like drug dealers" — **PICTURED: The brothers say they have been treated “like drug dealers”**

Lewisham Council issued an enforcement notice demanding the pair pull the system down in 2019.

And in 2022 the council launched a prosecution against the pair for breaching the enforcement notice.

In 2023 they were found guilty in absence at Bromley Magistrates Court.

The brothers said they were distracted during this period as their mother had passed away and they had to look after their ill father. They said this was the reason they did not turn up to court in 2023.

The case has been rumbling on ever since – with the council now demanding the brothers pay them £2.5million after an analysis of their income over the past six years.

It has all become too much for Sahin.

**PICTURED: The extractor fan system at the back of the restaurant**

He and his brother were forced to hand their passports to the police due to the legal proceedings, meaning they could not attend their uncle’s funeral in Turkey.

A relative of the pair has now set up a GoFundMe page to support their legal costs, raising more than £13,000 in the past few days.

But the brothers were reluctant to set up the page due to the stigma of asking for help.

Sahin said: “Some people think we are begging for money and that is even worse than them taking our passports away.

“In 2012 we were ranked as the 7th best restaurant in London on TripAdvisor. Everyone said you are a successful man, now I’m here begging for money. Do you know how bad that is?

“There’s been so much stress. I’ve lost my touch. I’m not the same dad, I’m not the same husband I used to be.”

John Paul Morgan, a customer at the restaurant who first raised awareness about the brother’s case on his website The Big Retort, said: “POCA was created for organised crime. And then local authorities looked at POCA and realised they could start using it against dodgy landlords. They’re targeting people who make silly mistakes.”

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A Lewisham Council spokesperson said: “We always try to resolve cases informally, and prosecution is an absolute last resort. The vast majority of the hundreds of planning enforcement cases are dealt with by us in this way.

“This has been a long running case since neighbours complained about the smoke, noise and smells from the restaurant before 2018. In 2019 the restaurant owners said they would remove the extraction system once their planning appeal had been dismissed. However, the restaurant continues to operate with the illegal extractor eight years after this case was opened.

“Had the extraction system been removed at any point during that time then no further action would have been necessary.

“We are open to working with the restaurant to resolve the planning breach. Last month (September), we carried out a site inspection with the owners and offered advice on steps required to put a new system in place.

“The Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) has arisen because they have been found guilty by the Court of a criminal offence. The Court ordered confiscation of passports because the defendants did not turn up at Court hearings. This was a matter for the Court and we had no involvement. Similarly, the financial investigation and penalties are guided by the rules set out in the Proceeds of Crime Act and the decisions of the Court.

“Our priority now is to ensure this matter is resolved as quickly as possible and we remain committed to working with the restaurant owners.”

The pair’s next POCA hearing will take place at Woolwich Crown Court on October 24.

Home » News » Restaurant owners face £2.5million council bill in extractor fan row

Restaurant owners face £2.5million council bill in extractor fan row

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