A South Norwood takeaway that had no power for fridges and was lit by candles has been fined over £21,000 for filthy conditions.

Food safety officers were refused permission to Yard Style Kitchen in Portland Road, and obstruction was one of eight offences that led to company director Leroy Houslin being fined £21,614.02, when he appeared at Croydon Magistrates' Court on Tuesday, May 21.

The court heard officers first visited the premises last April and discovered several breaches of hygiene regulations.

The business was found to be very dirty and in a poor state of repair and there was no food safety management system in place.

A letter was sent to the owner outlining the legal requirements, with recommendations for good practice and a timescale for completion.

A second visit found no improvement had been made and a deep clean of the premises was ordered in May.

Third and fourth visits took place in July and October, again no effort had been made to improve the standards of the business.

The structure and equipment were still in very dirty condition and a poor state of repair.

In February, officers visited the business after learning the power had been disconnected. They found the shop lit by candles and a number of customers at the counter.

The officers phoned Houslin after staff refused them entry to the kitchen, but he also said they could not enter.

Houslin admitted failing to keep food safe, failing to keep the premises clean and in good condition and failing to keep equipment which food comes into contact with in a clean condition.

He also admitted obstructing officers and non compliance with Hygiene Improvements Notices.

Councillor Simon Hoar, cabinet member for community safety, said: "As if the disgusting conditions in which food was prepared and sold to the public in his premises were not bad enough, the owner of this establishment compounded matters by preventing our food safety officers going about their lawful business.

" Such obstruction, fortunately, is a very rare event in this sort of case. The conditions in the premises were truly awful and represented a genuine danger to anybody eating food bought from the place.

"They were conditions that he knew were completely unacceptable and that he wished to keep from the public gaze."