A landlord is alleging a cover-up by Somerset Police after they refused to log his complaints about noise by his tenant -- who is also an officer at that station.

Edward Correia is now trying to evict the tenant after being driven frantic by late-night noise.

And his lawyer said when he charged that Police weren't logging complaints, the officer who heads Police Complaints washed his hands of it and urged him to go to the Press.

Mr. Correira said the noise started in January: "I can't sleep. It was from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.,'' he said.

"There's marbles being dropped on the wooden floor which is my ceiling. Ash trays are thrown. There's loud music. Nobody knows what I am going through -- I had to sleep three nights in my car.'' He said Police had attended his White Gate Lane house twice to investigate noise from the upstairs apartment.

On one occasion they left but Mr. Correia found the complaint had not been logged although the noise actually occurred while the Police were upstairs.

But Police claim there was no noise made during that night.

Mr. Correira said the nightly barrage from his tenant started in January and has been happening on and off ever since.

He said: "All I am asking for is justice. I am not asking for the moon.'' His lawyer Tyrone Chin said: "I asked one sergeant if I could make a Police complaint. He said it was a civil matter.

"I said Police officers should act to both the spirit and the letter of the law even in their private affairs.'' "When I spoke to Acting Chief Inspector Kendrick James he said it wasn't the first time he had heard of the Somerset branch of the Police protecting their own.

"There's a problem here. Who's policing the Police? He said have you ever thought about the Press? "He prompted me. It's almost like saying his hands are tied.

"I told him if I went to the Press the Police would have egg on their face.

He told me "You have to do what you have to do''.

Mr. Chin said he had spoken to another officer who told him that if his client wanted the call to be logged properly he should not call the Somerset station but should call Police Headquarters at Prospect because it gets logged by the computer and they will dispatch the Police.

Mr. Chin said: "But they said don't waste our time, call Somerset Police Station.

But Police denied a cover-up.

A spokeswoman said: "All calls coming into the Police Command Operations Division (Prospect), and which require the presence of Police, are logged.

"In fact, both Mr. Correia and Mr. Chin have been advised by the Western Divisional Commander Chief Inspector Phil Every of the procedures and benefits of calling in to the Operations Division.'' She also advised them the matter will be likely resolved through the civil courts (as opposed to the criminal courts).

The spokeswoman said this was because when Police attended the apartment there was no noise.

She said: "As Police appear, the problem often disappears.'' "It requires at least two or more complaints for these types of offences (Under the Summary Offences Act) before Police can prosecute the alleged offender.

"In each case there has only been one complainant -- the landlord.

"No one else in the surrounding area has called to complain about either loud music or loud noises.

"There is some discrepancy concerning what Mr. Chin has alleged Mr. James told him, and what Mr. James recalls of the conversation.

"Certainly if there was the implication to Mr. James, that the prospect of media exposure would bring anything further to bear on the case for Mr. Chin's client, then it is obvious that Police cannot (nor would we want to) control a person's right to exercise that option.''