One of the men behind a barricade of fridges which appeared outside a fish and chip shop has become homeless after his flat was condemned.

Kevin Wildeman was forced to leave his flat above The Clutter Box, in Loose Road, Maidstone, last night after it was declared unsafe by the fire service.

The move came a day after the 53-year-old joined forces with business partner Paul Stone to block off neighbouring Big Ben’s Fish & Grill with more than 20 fridges in a bid to stay in the property.

The pair claim the land lord has embarked on a campaign of 'under hand tactics' to clear the property in order to develop it, but insist they have done nothing wrong.

The fridge wall was described as a 'peaceful protest' carried out in response to them being 'bullied out of the property'.

They are now being investigated by The Environment Agency.

Richard Phillips, a spokesman for RA Property Management which looks after the buildings, accused Mr Stone of a ‘trilogy of illegal activity’ and said the property was being cleared following a series of contract breaches.

He added: "The land lord won't be commenting on the sitaution, he just wants a peaceful life."

A spokesman for Kent Fire and Rescue Service said: “The fire safety arrangements in the building were found to be inadequate. KFRS was so concerned about the danger from fire posed to anyone using the first floor accommodation that a notice was served preventing the use of the top floor of the building. This is to protect people on the first floor from fire.

“On Thursday KFRS worked with colleagues in Kent Police to make sure that the prohibition notice is complied with and that no one uses the first floor of the building until the fire safety issues have been rectified.”

Kent Police confirmed no action is currently being taken against the pair.

The Environment Agency has said they are liaising with Maidstone Borough Council over the issue and may visit the site.

Speaking this morning Mr Stone said while the battle may be lost the war rages on, saying: “This is a game of chess, we’ll be in check and then they’ll be in check.

“The protest was a one-off just to show them we couldn’t be pushed around.”