A Lazenby fly-tipper who dumped asbestos and building waste in the picturesque North York Moors has been jailed.
Darren Goddard was caged for 16 weeks at Scarborough Magistrates’ Court after admitting he ditched the materials near Danby in the national park, last August.
The prosecution was brought by waste enforcement officers at Scarborough Council who worked together with North Yorkshire Police to trace the defendant and bring him to justice.
The offence is the first time an offender has been jailed in the Scarborough area has been jailed for fly-tipping – something the council says should serve as a warning to others.
Magistrates said in court that Goddard acted for reward and that the offence was premeditated, making it clear they were not prepared to suspend the sentence.
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Harry Briggs, deputy operations, transport and countryside manager at the council said:
“This is an important sentence and demonstrates how seriously we, North Yorkshire Police and HM Court Service take such offences. We always investigate reports of fly-tipping with a view to tracing and bringing those responsible to justice.
This is the first custodial sentence that we have achieved for an offence of fly-tipping in our borough, which must act as a warning to anyone who thinks they can dump waste in our communities and get away with it.”
Sergeant Gareth Gilleard of Whitby Neighbourhood Policing Team said:
“The custodial sentence imposed by the court sends a very strong message that dumping waste in our precious countryside is completely unacceptable.
The prosecution also underlines how we can tackle this issue, with police, local authorities and other organisations working closely together.
I would urge members of the public to help us, if you find or witness fly-tipping, wherever it is, record as many details about the incident and the waste as you can, and report it to your local authority or via the gov.uk website.
New powers are coming in to force this month, which will permit the council to issue penalties to households who give their waste to unlicensed people.
It means anyone whose waste is found dumped can be charged, and you can check if someone is authorised by the Environment Agency online.“
Fy-tipping in the Scarborough area can be reported online or by calling 01723 23 23 23.”