A Londoner who drove to a busy A-road in Wiltshire to fly-tip has been slapped with a fine.
Chunlin Zheng, of Philip Lane in Tottenham, pleaded guilty at Swindon Magistrates Court on Friday, August 8, to leaving wooden waste in a layby on the A361 near Trowbridge.
He was fined a total of £1,114 (including costs and a victim surcharge) and given a 12-month Community Order, requiring him to complete 300 hours unpaid community work.
This was later reduced to 200 hours due to his early plea. Part of his unpaid community work may involve litter collecting around Wiltshire.
On 22 January, Mr Zheng was spotted by a member of the public dumping waste from a white van and reported to Wiltshire Police.
Officers identified the Londoner, who admitted the offence and claimed he had been paid £150 to dispose of the wood.
Mr Zheng told officers he was short of money and was unable to take the waste to the household recycling centre as he was using a commercial vehicle and would have incurred a charge.
He was told by police to clear the waste and warned that failure to comply would result in his arrest.
Bodycam footage posted on Wiltshire Council’s Facebook page shows the moment police approach Mr Zheng.
In the footage, the officer approaches Mr Zheng just after he appears to have fly-tipped.
The officer asks why he has done so, to which Mr Zheng replies by saying he doesn’t know why he dropped it, and apologises.
During the investigation led by Wiltshire Council’s Environmental Enforcement team, Mr Zheng was interviewed under caution and admitted to being paid £350 to dump the waste, instead of the £150 that he had previously claimed.
He also confirmed that he was working as a self-employed removal person but that he did not hold a waste carrier’s licence. He failed to provide waste transfer notes for his business.
A £1,000 fixed penalty notice was issued to Mr Zheng on 10 March, but to this date it remains unpaid.
Cllr Martin Smith, cabinet member for highways, streetscene and flooding, said: “Mr Zheng was caught in the act of fly-tipping by a nearby member of the public, who not only quickly reported it but also stayed on scene until the police arrived. I want to thank this person for acting in the way that they did."
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The council has issued a thanks to both Wiltshire Police for their initial work to apprehend the offenders, and Metropolitan Police with the investigation. The officer’s bodycam footage provided key evidence for the case.
“Fly-tipping is a serious environmental crime that blights our communities, and we continue to take it very seriously," Cllr Smith said.
“As someone who is running a waste removal business, Mr Zheng has a legal obligation to ensure that any waste is disposed of safely, legally and responsibly – and this includes having the correct documentation.
“Choosing to fly-tip as the cheaper option, has resulted in a heftier fine payment and a criminal record. I hope that he has learned his lesson.
“We will continue to pursue offenders who ignore the law and encourage residents to report fly-tipping to us through the MyWilts app to help us protect Wiltshire’s beautiful landscapes.”
Temporary chief inspector Andy Lemon, from the Rural Crime Team said: “Fly-tipping has a detrimental effect on the environment and it’s something we need to crack down on in Wiltshire. It’s not only destroying our beautiful countryside but also costing our already stretched local authorities millions of pounds.
“If you’ve witnessed fly-tipping please photograph the discarded items if possible and find the right antisocial behaviour reporting service using our online tool.”
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