THE owner of a Radcliffe restaurant has been fined £3,000 after admitting to fly-tipping near his premises for the second time in four months.

Vincenzo Cabuderra, the proprietor of the Italia Mia in Stand Lane, appeared before Bury magistrates in a prosecution by Bury Council and pleaded guilty to two offences of failing to control waste from his business and two offences of failing to abide by the terms of an abatement notice in respect of depositing waste from behind his restaurant.

It is the second time Cabuderra, of Sandown Road, Unsworth, has been before the magistrates charged with fly-tipping. In December, he was fined £750 after admitting to similar charges.

Mr James Parry, prosecuting, told the court on Tuesday there had been a number of complaints from members of the public about the rubbish, along with reports of insect and rat infestations.

The prosecution asked the court to serve the defendant with an Anti-Social Behaviour Order (ASBO) in an attempt to put a stop to the problem in what environmental health officers have described as a "grot spot".

Mr Parry said: "He has not learned his lesson. If abatement notices have not worked, the prospect of an ASBO, with consequences of prison for a breach, may encourage clean-up of these premises and he will not be troubled by the local authority again."

Mr Tony Shimmin, defending, argued that Cabuderra's problems with rubbish began when he stopped using Bury Council's waste disposal service and took out a contract with a private company who failed to provide regular collections, causing the rubbish to accumulate.

Mr Shimmin claimed that, since the December prosecution, he had cleaned up the rear of the restaurant and was back with the council's collection service. He has also educated his staff in rubbish disposal, with his wife regularly patrolling the area, and has two large bins to deal with waste.

Mr Shimmin said: "An ASBO is heavy-handed and a step too far. He has got his act together and things are now much better."

Magistrates fined Cabuderra £750 for each offence and ordered him to pay £350 in costs. They rejected the ASBO application, saying Cabuderra had realised the seriousness of the situation and taken steps to combat the problem.