Reading Kitchen Worktop Wholesaler Handed Suspended Jail Sentence and Company Fined £300,000

A director of a Reading-based kitchen worktop wholesaler has been handed a 12-month suspended jail sentence and his company fined £300,000 after an employee was left with life-threatening injuries following a warehouse accident.

In June 2022, the Council’s food and safety team officers were alerted to a serious accident at Unit 5, Preston Road, one of two warehouses in Reading leased by Classic Quartz Stone Ltd. 

An employee, who had only been with the company for a month, was struck by three large quartz slabs weighing approximately 800 – 1100Kg. He was rushed to hospital where he spent over 50 days, including 28 days in intensive care. At one point the victim was in a medically induced coma. His injuries included fractured ribs, liver laceration and a blood clot on his heart.

The employee had been tasked to move the slabs along with his coworker, who was operating a forklift truck. He did not speak English and had not been given sufficient training or instruction to carry out the task safely. He was not aware of the danger area directly in front of the slabs, which were not secured by any straps or any mechanical means to prevent them toppling. The safe procedure for separating the slabs for transportation was frequently not followed and staff stood in front of a batch of slabs - stored on A frames with no straps or restraints - and used a small wedge of wood to separate three slabs from the pack, at which point a boom attachment to the forklift truck would lift them up to move them. The victim placed a wedge between three of the slabs and the remaining pack when they overbalanced, pinning him by his chest.

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During the subsequent Council investigation, officers requested and reviewed a large number of documents, including risk assessments, training policies and records, safe systems of work, and health and safety policy. Documents were found to be deficient and in September 2022 prohibition notices were issued by the Council to prevent the unsafe handling of quartz slabs within the two warehouses, the other located at Unit 7 Nimrod Way.

Council officers painstakingly reviewed five weeks of CCTV footage at the warehouse. They identified that practices in place at the time of the incident were far from isolated, and footage also showed there had been previous near misses in the month preceding the victim’s injury. In total, at least 175 health and safety breaches were identified. These included allowing children into hazard zones in the warehouse; failure to provide personal protective equipment to staff and members of the public; poor vehicle and pedestrian separation; walking across stacked slabs; and failure to mechanically secure slabs by any means. 

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On 6 July 2026, Reading Crown Court was shown disturbing video footage of the crushing incident and photographs of the aftermath. The court heard how a variety of Health & Safety failings were identified relating to induction, training, risk assessments, PPE, incorrect equipment, unsafe storage, unsafe systems of work and customers put at risk. 

Monther Aries, Director of Classic Quartz Stone Limited, was handed a 12-month custodial sentence, suspended for 18 months, plus a 10-day rehabilitation order and 200 hours of unpaid work.

Classic Quartz Stone Limited was ordered to pay a £300,000 fine and victim surcharge of £187. The company had also paid compensation to the victim in a civil claim. 

During the Council investigation Mr Aries was found to have previously been named Mr Alrayes, and under that name had a previous conviction for health and safety offences after an employee was caused serious and life-threatening injuries under similar circumstances in 2010 when working for M & R Granite Limited in Hayes.  

Councillor Rachel Eden, Lead for Public Health and Education at Reading Borough Council, said:

"Safety at work is a key right for all workers, and this was an incredibly serious case.

“It demonstrates the often-unseen hard work and dedication of Reading Council officers to ensure that employees in Reading are safe at work.  Working conditions were found to be completely unacceptable and the employer showed a conscious and flagrant disregard to the safety of its employees and customers.

“The company profited from its employment of vulnerable individuals, failing to invest resources into required equipment, procedures and training, and by requiring staff to work in conditions where they could have lost their lives.  

“Health and Safety regulations are in place for a reason.  We can only be thankful that in this case the employee at the centre of this case survived, albeit with horrendous injuries.  My thoughts are with them and their loved ones.

“The vast majority of businesses operators in Reading are responsible, but it's important that all employers know that the Council takes breaches extremely seriously and will always act to protect the safety of workers and residents in our town.”