A cockroach infested Indian takeaway has been slapped with a £10,000 fine after a woman found a four-inch piece of wire wool in her chicken curry.

A couple from East Malling found the metal, which is thought to have come from kitchen scourers, after ordering from Al-Madina Tandoori.

The takeaway in Woodlands Road, Ditton, was subsequently investigated by Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council where a number of failings were discovered.

Council inspectors visited the site on June 16 last year and found evidence of a cockroach infestation, no hot water for handwashing in the kitchen, and a lack of measures to avoid food cross contamination.

Technical analysis showed the strand of wire wool from the chicken dhansak curry was consistent with the type of scourer used at the takeaway.

Deborah Cocks, who was the unlucky customer with her husband Simon, 58, described the incident as the "most frightening moment of her life".

The 54-year-old, who has multiple sclerosis, said: "My partner and I both ordered a chicken curry, rice and Naan bread, and I got a third of the way through it before I felt a sharp, stabbing pain in my throat.

"I have steered clear of chicken dhansk - I can't face it..!"

"I put my fingers in the back of my throat and pulled out a long piece of wire. I spat my food and screamed at my husband about what I had just found and we couldn't believe it.

"Simon rang the restaurant and they tried saying it was a cinammon stick and were really dismissive until Simon sent them photos of the wire.

"They didn't seem bothered by they fact they nearly just very seriously injured me or worse. I'm so lucky that I caught in when I did. Having MS causes me to have an impaired reflex if I choke."

Following the incident, inspectors ordered the takeaway to close while the issues were resolved and later, the company was charged for selling food not of the substance demanded by the purchase and failing to comply with hygiene regulations relating to hot water, pest control and cross contamination.

At Sevenoaks Magistrates' Court last Friday, a company representative pleaded guilty to all charges and the eatery was fined £2,666 on each offence - £10,664 in total - as well as an additional £190 victim surcharge and £2,625 towards prosecution costs.

A second inspection a month later found that necessary steps had been taken to address the food hygiene problems and in September the eatery was awarded the highest possible food hygiene rating.

Owner Sunahor Ali revealed he and the restaurant disputed the claims made in court, and will be appealing the decision.

He said: "We spoke to our lawyer and we are going to be re appealing this case and take it to court.

"They are trying to destroy the local businesses by talking bad about them. The local people and the authority know our service and food is good."

When asked about the wire wool incident with the Cocks family, Mr Ali said he had asked them to come to the restaurant so he could inspect the food.

"We don't know exactly what he was looking at in his food," the restaurant owner added.

"We had to see the food so we can give his refund but he didn't want to come.

"We tried solving the issue with the customer but he didn't comply."

Deborah, of Carnation Crescent, admitted she still fancies a takeaway, but will be steering clear of the takeaway, and thinks it got of lightly.

She added: "I do like an Indian meal but to be honest I have steered clear of chicken dhansk - I just can't face it!

"I don't think that the fines are enough. As far as I'm concerned it won't be enough to stop bad and dangerous practices.

"There needs to be more constant retraining in the food industry. If there was any sort of good food hygiene practice in place I wouldn't have nearly choked to death on a piece of wire."

Cllr Robin Betts, council cabinet member for environmental health at Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council, said: "We always try to work constructively with restaurants to ensure customers are protected from poor hygiene standards and the risks to health they can pose.

"Unfortunately, in this instance the issues were sufficiently serious that we felt it necessary to close the restaurant temporarily and bring a prosecution.

"I’m pleased to say that following our action, subsequent inspections have found that the owners have raised standards significantly and have now scored the highest rating for hygiene."