Hereford takeaway loses late licence

A Hereford takeaway has lost its late-night licence following a brawl involving staff.

Munchies in Commercial Road had been licensed to serve hot food in the form of kebabs and pizzas until 3.30am each night.

But during what police described as “an affray” outside the restaurant in December, a customer was “repeatedly beaten” which neither the owner Ako Rasoul nor his staff intervened to prevent.

Police also claimed Mr Rasoul had failed to meet other conditions of his late-night licence, and called on Herefordshire Council’s licensing subcommittee to review it.

Last Wednesday (February 21), the subcommittee backed the police’s recommendation to revoke the late-night licence.

“Taking into consideration the serious nature of the incident, the committee feels it is appropriate to revoke the licence in line with the recommendation of the police,”, its chair Coun Polly Andrews said.

Council papers relating to the case were restricted and most of the one-and-a-half-hour meeting, involving Mr Rasoul, his agent and police licensing officer PC Dean Wall, was held in private with no recording made.

In doing this, the council invoked the Local Government Act 1972, which says information “relating to any individual” is exempt from the requirement to make council business public.

In November the committee granted a licence to Mr Rasoul to sell alcohol until 2am from a neighbouring premises, Skyblue Liquor at 60 Commercial Road, despite concerns raised of potential anti-social behaviour.