More flytippers caught out (From Oxford Mail)

More flytippers caught out

6:16pm Thursday 10th December 2009

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TWO men have been fined after they were caught on CCTV illegally dumping office furniture at a flytipping hotspot.

Eugenio Banaga In Mereu, of East Way, Drayton, and Alex Griffin, of High Street, Drayton, were captured by a high-tech camera which was installed at Steventon Community Woodland car park following complaints of flytipping incidents.

Oxford Brookes University student Merue, 22, and unemployed Griffin, 20, dumped a broken office desk on July 25 after carrying out restoration work in Drayton.

The pair drove a blue Alfa Romeo into the car park before emptying the contents of the boot on to the floor.

Vale of White Horse District Council environment wardens checked the vehicle’s details with the DVLA and discovered from the car’s owner that Mereu had been driving at the time.

During a formal interview the pair said they dumped the rubbish after their local tip was closed for the evening.

They were sentenced at Didcot Magistrates’ Court on Monday, where they admitted unlawfully depositing waste.

Mereu was considered to be the main instigator and was sentenced to 80 hours unpaid work and ordered to pay £100 towards prosecution costs.

Griffin received a curfew order to reside at his mother’s address in Buckinghamshire between the hours of 7pm and 7am from Monday to Friday with immediate effect for a period of four weeks. He was also ordered to pay £100 towards prosecution costs.

Angela Lawrence, district council executive member for environmental health, said: “In dumping this rubbish these two men not only showed absolutely no thought for the land owner or people using the car park, but also created a nasty blight on the landscape.

“Flytipping is an incredibly antisocial act which takes away from the beauty of our open spaces, costs an awful lot of time and effort to clear up, and is potentially dangerous to people in that area.”

Colin Marshall, district council environment warden, said: “There is absolutely no excuse for flytipping and now that we are able to position CCTV cameras in areas that are persistently targeted the chances that offenders will be caught and consequently brought to justice are quite high.”

Flytipping prosecutions can result in five years in jail or a fine of up to £50,000 or both.

To report an incident of flytipping in the Vale of White Horse call the environment wardens on 01235 520202 or use the Report It! forms on the council’s website at whitehorsedc.gov.uk

A FLYTIPPER will miss out on Christmas and New Year celebrations after he was ordered to spend every evening until the end of January indoors.

Adrian Flint, 19, of Collett Way, Grove, was caught out after labels bearing his address were found with bin bags, cardboard boxes, pictures, shoes and other household items he dumped in Denchworth Road, Grove.

During an interview Flint admitted dumping the rubbish in July while returning from his partner’s house, claiming he knew it was wrong but he had been “having a bad day”.

He pleaded guilty at Didcot Magistrates’ Court on Monday to illegally depositing controlled waste.

Flint, who is unemployed, was given a curfew order and will have to spend between 7pm and 7am at his partner’s mother’s address between December 7 and January 31.

He was also ordered to pay £200 in costs.

Colin Marshall, district council environment warden, said: “The fact that not only does this man now have a criminal record and costs to pay but will also have his freedom severely limited over the Christmas and New Year period should serve as a stark warning to others that flytipping will simply not be tolerated.”

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