A teenager has been ordered to pay more than £3,500 after repeatedly playing loud, bass-heavy music.
Imre Lakatos, 19, was sentenced in absentia at Bradford Magistrates’ Court on Friday after failing to adhere to a noise abatement notice.
The court imposed a £1,500 fine along with £1,480 in council costs and a £600 surcharge.
Magistrates warned the Napier Road resident he would face an additional £150 penalty for each day the music continues.
The fine marks the second time Lakatos has been sentenced this year for the same offence.
He was previously ordered to pay over £3,000 in late January after failing to appear at an earlier hearing.
The bench chair told him a warrant might be issued should he breach the order again.
Bradford Magistrates Court heard the noise issues represented a “long-standing matter” for the council.
Bradford council have fined the man for his repeated offence
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BRADFORD COUNCIL
Prosecutor Waseem Raja explained Bradford Council had received complaints about amplified music from the Thornbury property for several years.
Following numerous complaints from a neighbouring resident, the council took enforcement action in June 2023.
Officers installed noise monitoring equipment in the complainant’s home, which captured recordings demonstrating the music was played at unreasonable levels.
The recordings showed the amplified music continued well into the early hours of the morning.
A formal noise abatement notice was served to Lakatos on June 7, 2023, after warning letters were issued.
While the volume of music reduced somewhat after the notice was served, it did not cease entirely.
Despite the reduction, complaints persisted into the following year.
On May 3, 2025, a neighbour submitted a recording taken at 9.30pm showing excessive music levels, two years after the initial order.
Environmental Health officers attended the property on May 30 following reports of unbearable noise.
The court heard they could detect the amplified music with a dominant bass beat from their vehicle whilst parked on the opposite side of the street.
When officers attempted to contact Lakatos at his front door, they received no response.
They were forced to knock on a window to attract his attention, with Lakatos explaining the volume had prevented him from hearing their knocking.
He told officers he was merely testing the equipment before planning to sell it.
The court heard officers could detect the music from their vehicle parked on the opposite side of the street
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BRADFORD COUNCIL
Bradford Council took 38 separate noise recordings across seven different days, all of which officers deemed to constitute a statutory nuisance.
In November, the Environmental Enforcement team obtained a warrant to enter the property and confiscate noise-making equipment.
Officers removed speakers and televisions from the Napier Road address on November 20.
However, the seizure failed to halt the “beats and bass style of music”.
Fresh complaints were received on 30 January, the date of Lakatos’s previous court appearance, as well as on multiple occasions throughout February and early March.
Mr Raja told magistrates: “He completely ignored the noise abatement notice – and the music is still being played.”
The court approved another warrant allowing the council to remove any further speakers or noise-producing equipment from the property.