A FORMER binman who invested his savings into property management has been fined £2,750 for breaching housing laws.

Abdou Niang moved to Oxford from France and became a binman for Oxford City Council, putting aside wages to save £20,000.

The 33-year-old had used the cash to become a property manager, but Oxford Magistrates’ Court heard this week how he fell into legal and financial difficulties for renting out an unlicensed house.

Prosecutor Jeremy Franklin said city council officers swooped on a two-storey property in Barns Road in February last year and found eight people living there.

He told Oxford Magistrates’ Court on Monday that Niang admitted not having a house in multiple occupation (HMO) licence when quizzed by officers.

Landlords renting out homes to three or more people who are not part of the same household or family need an HMO licence.

Niang also admitted failing to ensure the communal parts of the building were in good and clean repair and the garden was kept safe and tidy.

But Simon Graham-Harrison, defending, said Niang’s plans had fallen apart when he hired a cowboy builder to renovate the property.

He told the court that Niang had agreed to renovate and manage the property for the landlord in exchange for a slice of the rents.

Mr Graham-Harrison added: “When he took the property on it was in a dilapidated condition.

“He put £9,000 of his own money into the property.

“But things have gone wrong for him because he has employed a Ukranian builder and paid him a considerable lump sum.

“Then, under the guise of returning to the Ukraine for a visit, he disappeared, taking the money.”

Mr Graham-Harrison said his client had meant to get a HMO licence, but had been too busy trying to sort out the structure to apply for one before his tenants moved in.

He said Niang now stands to lose all his investment, but will also have to pay the fine imposed by the court for breaching the laws.

Niang, of Gaisford Road, Cowley, was fined £2,000 for not having an HMO licence as well as £250 for each of the three breaches.

He was also ordered to pay £120 victim surcharge and £2,188 costs.

It is another successful prosecution brought on landlords by Oxford City Council, which has been cracking down on rogue landlords.

Between 2011 and 2014 the council successfully prosecuted 38 landlords for not having a licence, which represented 17 per cent of the total national prosecutions.

City council leader Bob Price hopes the number of court cases will drop now landlords have seen they will be prosecuted if they do not meet the required standards.

He added: “Our HMO registration scheme has been very successful in flushing out the areas that are not as good as we would wish and breach the regulations.”