Parent fined for child seat on bicycle

A father is fuming after being hauled before the courts and fined — for carrying his two-year-old son as a passenger on his bike. Ghulam Murtza, of Uxbridge Street, Burton, was shocked when he was stopped by police and told to take the youngster off the cycle. The 26-year-old had bought a bike seat from Halfords and bolted it to the crossbar of his mountain bike.

He then wrapped the seat in duct tape to ensure it was doubly secure. “It’s not going to move,” he said. Mr Murtza said he had previously been carrying his son, Armaan, around on the cycle for more than a year and had never been stopped by the police before. When an officer gave him a fixed penalty notice for carrying more than one person on a pedal cycle, he promptly tore it up in frustration and threw on the floor.



To add insult to injury, he was then charged with an additional offence of littering. He subsequently felt he had no choice but to admit both charges when the case was brought before Burton Magistrates’ Court. David Peel, prosecuting, told the court: “He had put a seat on the cross bar, which his two-year-old son was sitting on.” Representing himself, Mr Murtza said: “Why do they sell seats if you can’t have two people on? It’s crazy.”

Mr Murtza was fined £100 for the bicycle offence, as well as being ordered to pay court costs of £85 and a victim surcharge of £15. He was given no separate penalty for littering. “It’s twisted,” Mr Murtza said following the proceedings. “I don’t think it’s fair. They had nothing better to do than stop me enjoying my time with my son.”