A millionaire accountant has been jailed for ignoring a court order to tear down ‘Britain’s best man cave’ after a marathon battle with the council, reports Metro.
… continually ignored planning law and policies that are there to protect local communities …
Metro writes:
Grandfather-of-five Graham Wildin, 70, is waking up behind bars this weekend after an eight-year fight over his home sport and leisure complex, which includes a bowling alley, mini-casino, squash court and cinema.
He was told he was being locked up for six weeks after judge Jarman QC ruled Wildin’s attitude showed he had been determined not to comply with repeated orders from the Forest of Dean District Council throughout the planning case over the hulking construction at the accountant’s home in Cinderford, Gloucestershire.
Deputy council leader Paul Hiett said: ‘The enforcement case against Mr Wildin has been a long and complex road.
‘In what should have been a completely avoidable situation, Mr Wildin has continually ignored planning law and policies that are there to protect local communities.
‘The law is the law and we won’t give up pursuing Mr Wildin and ensuring that he complies with the legislation in exactly the same way as everyone else… to protect local communities from behaviour like we’ve seen in this case, we will continue to pursue those that ignore planning policy using the routes set out in law.’
Wildin was led away by court security guards wheeling a small suitcase and put in a prison van outside Cardiff High Court on Friday…
The millionaire, whose complex has been dubbed ‘Britain’s best man cave’, built it in 2014 and was given two years to remove it in 2018….
Sentencing Wildin to six weeks behind bars, the judge awarded £10,000 costs to the council and told the accountant to render the building unusable when he comes out of prison or face being brought back before court, when he could again face more jail time.
