Caravan man Roland Gopel found guilty of illegally camping on own property

A WA man being fined $50 a day by his local council for living in a caravan on his own land says he will refuse to pay a new fine imposed by the courts.

Roland Gopel, 58, has been living in his van on the outskirts of Menzies, 700 kilometres north-east of Perth, on land he purchased in 2015.

But the Shire of Menzies said his lack of running water or sewerage and the dilapidated state of his property had left him in breach of key regulations.

While the shire has been fining him $50 per day since August 1, a separate prosecution for breaching WA's caravan park and campground act has seen him hit with a fresh $1,000 fine, and ordered to pay $3,000 of the shire's court costs.

'I will refuse to pay'

Speaking outside the Leonora Magistrates Court after the verdict, Mr Gopel said he would be appealing against the sentence at the earliest possible opportunity.

"I refuse to pay a fine for living. I refuse to be homeless," he said.

"We're Australians, we do not have to do as we're told for the sake of doing as we're told."

The fine comes on top of a previous conviction last August for similar offences, for which Mr Gopel was fined $1,000 and ordered to pay $1,745 in court costs, a penalty the 58-year-old is also yet to pay.

PHOTO: Mr Gopel says he left Perth behind because of the high property prices. (ABC News: Sam Tomlin)

Gopel 'living outside the regulations'

Magistrate Sandra De Maio said despite Mr Gopel's difficult circumstances, he was clearly in breach of the law.

"Mr Gopel is in a regretful situation where he's living on his land, but in circumstances which are not regulated," Ms De Maio said.

"He is clearly living outside the restrictions."

With Mr Gopel representing himself, Ms De Maio repeatedly stopped proceedings to explain aspects of the trial process to the 58-year-old.

"I appreciate your reasons for living as you do," she said.

"You want to live on your land, but the fact is we all must comply with regulations designed to ensure health and safety of our neighbours."

She said the penalty reflected Mr Gopel's limited ability to pay a substantial fine, with most of his $550 fortnightly income going towards paying his rates and pre-established debts.

'This is not about kicking Mr Gopel off his property'

Appearing for the shire, lawyer Andrew Wadham said the council only wanted to bring Mr Gopel's property up to standard, not evict him.

"Ultimately, this is not about kicking Mr Gopel off his property, it's about achieving compliance," Mr Wadham said.

"There is no order your honour could make that could force Mr Gopel off his land."

But he said the shire could not make an exception to its health and safety rules in any case.

PHOTO: Roland Gopel says he could not afford to live elsewhere. (Jarrod Lucas: ABC Goldfields-Esperance)

The council's key witness, its Environmental Officer David Hadden, said the council first approached Mr Gopel in 2015 after complaints from Menzies residents.

Under questioning from Mr Wadham, he said he had made multiple visits to Mr Gopel's property, each time explaining the steps he needed to take to bring it up to regulations.

"It was easily 12 inspections over that period," Mr Hadden said.

"He believes no-one has the right to control what he does on his own property."

He said he had repeatedly explained the potential penalties Mr Gopel faced if he failed to comply with the council's regulations.

Mr Gopel said he planned to install a septic tank, but added he had no intention of connecting to mains water, because he did not want to be forced into paying an ongoing bill.