Man in court after County Durham takeaway deemed public health risk

A former County Durham takeaway owner has appeared in court over multiple food hygiene charges.

An unannounced inspection at Santinos in Front Street, Sacriston, on 7 March 2023 found the business posed a threat to public health, with a decomposing rat discovered beneath cooking equipment in the kitchen.

The environmental health officer, from Durham County Council, also discovered the premises was dirty and in a poor state of repair, cooking equipment was not being cleaned properly and staff had received inadequate food hygiene training.

Mohamad Ali Ghanbarzadeh Behbahani, of Cravenwood Road, Reddish, Stockport, was the owner of Santinos at the time of the inspection. The business is now permanently closed.

The 38-year-old pleaded guilty to six breaches of the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013 at Peterlee Magistrates Court this week.

Magistrates heard that Mr Behbahani had been running the takeaway since June 2020 but had failed to notify Durham County Council, despite this being a legal requirement.

Following the inspection on 7 March 2023, Mr Behbahani signed a voluntary closure agreement to keep the premises closed until satisfactory improvements had been made.

On returning to Santinos later that month, environmental health officers were satisfied with the improvements Mr Behbahini had made and the business was allowed to reopen. It went on to receive a 3-star ‘satisfactory’ food hygiene rating, but Mr Behbahani decided to close the business later that year.

The court head Mr Behbahani was apologetic during interview and pleaded guilty to the charges at the earliest opportunity.

Magistrates imposed fines and costs totalling £660.

Joanne Waller, head of community protection services at Durham County Council, said: “Food hygiene laws are in place to protect the public from what could potentially be life threatening illnesses.

“Our environmental health team supports food businesses in County Durham to improve and maintain their food hygiene standards. However, as this prosecution demonstrates, we will also take action against those who fall seriously short in their duty to ensure food is prepared in a safe and hygienic way.

“I would encourage anyone with any concerns about a food business in the county to contact us on 03000 261016 or ehcp@durham.gov.uk.”

To find out more about food safety in County Durham, including advice for businesses, visit www.durham.gov.uk/foodsafety with a decomposing rat discovered beneath cooking equipment