Herefordshire Council has won an enforcement case against a man from the south of England found guilty of fly tipping thirty pallets from the back of his lorry onto the side of the A40 during broad daylight in June 2023.

On Monday 4 March 2024, Hereford magistrates heard how at approximately 1.30pm on 20 June 2023, two witnesses noticed pallets being thrown from the back of a lorry into the hedge of a layby. The witnesses turned off at the next junction and travelled back along the A40 in order to record the fly tipping. The footage was reviewed by Enforcement officers of Herefordshire Council’s Community Protection team who traced the offender using the vehicle registration of the lorry.

Valentin Ene (31) of Kingsdown close, Basildon was identified as the offender and told officers he needed to empty his lorry in order to pick up goods from a business in Hereford, a job he was carrying out as part of his work as a lorry driver. Ene failed to appear for his first scheduled court hearing on Tuesday 23 January 2024, and an arrest warrant was issued. As a result, Valentin Ene was arrested and appeared at Hereford Magistrates court on Monday 4 March 2024 where he pleaded guilty to fly tipping and failing his duty of care.

Ene was fined £1600, ordered to pay £814.09 in costs and a victim surcharge of £640, totalling £3254.09.

Charles Yarnold, Herefordshire Council’s Head of Public Protection, says: “Every year, tens of thousands of pounds of council tax payers’ money is spent on clearing up fly tipping and unlawful waste disposal. Thank you to the members of the public who assisted in providing the evidence in this case which demonstrates our excellent community spirt and will to keep our county a beautiful place in which we live and work.”

The maximum penalty for fly-tipping is a £50,000 fine and/ or five years imprisonment.

Herefordshire council’s community protection team will investigate unlawful waste disposal and fly-tipping cases reported via the council’s website or by calling 01432 261761.

Visit herefordshire.gov.uk/recycling for information about responsible waste disposal.