Four sentenced for waste-dumping conspiracy across six London sites. Four men have been sentenced for conspiracy to illegally dump controlled waste at six vacant sites across London, following an Environment Agency investigation. Patrick Doherty received 28 months in prison and Martin Ward 18 months, with two co-defendants given 14-month suspended sentences.
The men were found guilty at Kingston-upon-Thames Crown Court of an offending pattern that spanned a year. According to the Environment Agency, gang members unlawfully occupied vacant sites and filled them with tyres and waste from house clearances and construction within hours, before moving on to the next location. At Imperial Way in Croydon, the landowner faced £300,000 in clean-up costs. At Station Road in Colliers Wood, the gang demanded £5,000 from a site worker; when the money was not paid, waste was piled five feet high and the clean-up cost £15,000.
Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds said: 'My message is simple - break the law by dumping waste and we will come after you.' The case follows the government's Waste Crime Action Plan and a £45 million increase to the agency's enforcement budget over three years. Waste crime costs the UK over £1 billion a year.
