An industrial fly tipper who dumped 20 tonnes of waste on a busy road in Newham has been jailed for eight months at Snaresbrook Crown Court.
Patrick Egan, 30, from Grange Road, Grays in Essex, appeared for sentencing after previously admitting three offences under the Environmental Protection Act at Thames Magistrates Court.
The magistrates heard evidence from Newham Council’s fly tip task force officers, and judged the offences too serious to impose an adequate sentence, so they sent the case to Snaresbrook.
Both courts were shown evidence, taken from CCTV cameras, of Egan driving a tipper truck full of waste, onto Eric Clarke Lane, Beckton on December 7, 2017 at around midday.
The CCTV images show that after briefly pulling up and getting out of the truck, Egan returned to the cab, and drove off, tipping the whole 20 tonnes of waste onto the carriage-way, as a bus on the busy route travels in the opposite direction.
Egan was later stopped in his truck by police in Essex, at the time the vehicle was filled with another load of waste. In interview he admitted the offences, and further offences of driving while disqualified. He also admitted he was paid to illegally dump the waste.
The total cost of clearing up the building waste, which was blocking the highway and the entrance to local stables used by children came to £3,827.
The court was told that Egan has a history of driving while disqualified, the most recent disqualification being imposed just two months before the fly tipping incident.
The judge when sentencing Egan to eight months in prison had taken into consideration the offence was a public road, adjacent to a stables used by children and the cost to residents of clearing the waste. In addition, the contents of the building waste which contained and glass could have caused injury.
Councillor Rachel Tripp, Newham Council cabinet member for the environment, said: “This is a brilliant result for the fly tip task force. This man is a menace to the people of Newham, his fly tipping is absolutely disgraceful, dangerous and clearly motivated purely by criminal profit.
“I would urge anyone who needs to dispose of large amounts of waste to check the credentials of the person they pay to remove it. If the person doesn’t have a valid waste carriers licence, and the rubbish is traced back to you, you could face prosecution yourself.”