A 70-year-old millionaire who refused to tear down his infamous man cave has been jailed following an eight year battle with his local council.
Graham Wildin appeared calm as he was told he would wake up behind bars this weekend after he refused to comply with a judge’s orders to dismantle the massive leisure complex he built in his back garden in Cinderford, Gloucestershire.
He now faces six weeks in jail following an eight year planning row over his one-of-a-kind illegally built complex, GloucestershireLive reported.
However the row is not yet over as Wildin has been informed that upon being released he has 18 weeks to comply with the original order to dismantle the facilities - an instruction he has repeatedly ignored in the past.
The massive man cave included a squash court, gym, cinema, bowling alley, a classic car collection, swimming pool, bar, casino and more.
Judge Jarman QC told the accountant that throughout the history of the case his attitude showed he had set his mind against complying with the Forest of Dean District Council.
They also did not accept the argument that Wildin had done most of the clearance work himself but could not afford to hire someone else, or complete it himself.
They also refused to adjourn the case for two months after Wildin said he needed more time to hire a solicitor and claim legal aid.
Wildin had fought the council at every turn before he was loaded into a prison van outside the High Court in Cardiff. This included trying to exploit a legal loophole to have his complex declared a fortress.
The long-running planning row dates back to 2014 when Wildin was told to take down one of the country’s largest man caves, then behind his and a neighbouring property - which is now owned by family.
Over the years, planning inspectors and courts have repeatedly agreed it was built without permission and set a number of deadlines.
In 2018, Wildin was given two years to comply with the order to break it all down.
But, after the first Covid lockdown, when planning officers visited the site Wildin had added the leisure centre and swimming pool.
In June 2021, the judge granted the local council a contempt of court application against Wildin for breaching an injunction.
He gave Wildin 18 weeks to cut off the water, electricity and gas and remove all fixtures, fittings and furniture from inside the building.
Wildin’s appeals were refused by two appeal court judges who told him he had been the author of his own misfortune.
The court heard this week that when enforcement officer Stephen Colgate visited the property on August 11, the lights were on, taps ran, toilets flushed and a gas boiler could be heard.
Whilst Wildin had removed the casino and bar, the vast majority of the work needed to comply with the order had not been done the court heard.
However, when arguing his case, Wildin claimed the electricity had been turned off but randomly came back on, possibly because of work being carried out in the street outside.
He also claimed he had done three quarters of the work he had been required to complete and produced 100 photos to back this up.
As well as that, he alleged that because the council turned up without notice and forced their way into his property the evidence should be inadmissible.
But council solicitor Helen Blundell told the court they had every right to check out the non domestic property without permission. She said officers had turned up without notice because they wanted to see the true picture of what was happening inside before anybody had time to turn off the utilities.
Questions were also raised about Wildin’s financial affairs as the defendant claimed he was facing bankruptcy but it was pointed out that he had sold his house, two cottages and a property in Tenerife and provided no evidence where the proceeds had gone.
Wildin said a family company now owned his classic car collection and although he still drove the Bentley and Porsche he did not own them. He admitted he still slept in Altea, his home, but said he would have to stay with his children when they rented it out as a holiday home.
Judge Jarman said it was up to Mr Wildin to prove his claims but the disclosure of his assets was "wholly inadequate" when common ground suggested they were "significant".
