OWNERS of a Newport building have been forced to pay £6,000 in fines and costs after refusing to co-operate with the fire services.

Sabrina Khan of Oakfield Road, Newport and Sabz Ali Khan of Lower Cathedral Road, Cardiff were fined £500 each and ordered to pay a further £5,000 in costs.

Business Fire Safety Officers had identified a number of potential fire safety breaches at 2 Cardiff Road, Newport, also known as Lilo Grillhouse Restaurant and Takeaway, and in the sleeping accommodation provided above.

South Wales Fire and Rescue Service (SWFRS) had requested information to assist in the investigation but the Khans refused to co-operate with them.

They were found guilty under Article 27 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 at Caerphilly Magistrates Court on July 18.

They had pleaded not guilty to the charge brought by South Wales Fire and Rescue Authority at a previous hearing.

Former director of Lilo Grillhouse Inn Limited, Mohamed Sai of City Road, Cardiff pleaded guilty to similar offences at a previous hearing and was fined £400 and ordered to pay £1,671 costs.

Gary Johnson, Head of Business Fire Safety for SWFRS, said: "I believe that this successful prosecution sends a clear message to members of the business community - business owners need to respond to formal requests for information from their local Fire and Rescue Service.

"As we can see in this case the fines and costs received are solely attributed to the failure to provide information."

He added: "The investigation regarding the fire safety contraventions discovered in December 2011 is continuing and we will continue to work at improving the standards of fire safety throughout our area."