York tenant wrecks flat before eviction

A nightmare neighbour who tormented local residents, trashed his own home and then refused to leave has finally been given the boot.

Mark Caple, 24, blasted music from his flat in Fossway, York, day and night, making the lives of other tenants a misery. Then when city council officers went in to forcibly evict him - after he had flouted a court instruction to get out - they found racist graffiti daubed over the walls and much of the property badly damaged.

One of Mr Caple's former victims today hailed the eviction, saying he had made her life hell. Tina Parry, 45, who lived in the flat below his for nearly two years, said: "By the end of it I was on the edge of a nervous breakdown and my partner was ill. We did nothing to Caple and he did a lot to us. Why he did it all, I will never know."

She said he had often knocked on her door in the early hours of the morning to wake her up, or played loud music all day and night. Ms Parry, who has also now moved away from Fossway, kept a log of her miserable ordeal, and said: "I pity whoever's going to have to put up with him now."

City of York Council was granted possession of the flat at a court hearing, and Mr Caple indicated he would leave. But he failed to do so, and council officers started eviction proceedings. When they went in, they found racist and anti-council slurs on the walls. "Up the BNP" and "I'd like to see the council get any of the money I owe them. Keep dreamin' boys."

Litter, dishes and unfinished food were strewn all over the house and much of the furniture was damaged. A tub beside the sink had "BSE cakes" written on the lid, and officers found a final reminder from the council discarded among the rubble.

A council spokeswoman said: "Much of the contents of the property will have to be disposed of and it will need to be re-decorated before it can be re-let. The cost of this work will be charged to Mr Caple once his new address has been established."

She said the eviction followed work by the council's tenancy enforcement, legal and environmental protection teams, and said Mr Caple's former neighbours had been very supportive of the action.

The dispute between Ms Parry and Mr Caple featured in The Press last December, when we revealed that the number of complaints about noise nuisance in York had doubled in the preceding 12 months. More complaints were received from Fossway than any other city street. The Press tried without success to contact Mr Caple.

The Press (York)