Fine for Slough man who dumped rubbish suspected to contain asbestos in layby

A Slough man has been ordered to pay out almost £3,000 after dumping rubbish he suspected contained hazardous asbestos in a Buckinghamshire layby.

Harinder Singh, of Almonds Way, pleaded guilty to illegally dumping rubbish and was sentenced at High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court on October 15.  

The 50-year-old was caught red-handed on CCTV as he and an accomplice chucked old corrugated roofing, which were believed to include asbestos, by the roadside in August last year.

Buckinghamshire Council’s cabinet member for waste Ade Osibogun said Singh’s decision to fly-tip ‘suspected hazardous materials’ had been ‘both reckless and selfish’.

CCTV footage showed Singh and another individual dump the waste on the outskits of Slough, in Middle Green Road on August 12.

The pair pulled into a layby, opened their vehicle’s rear doors and proceeded to brazenly discard the waste. The two then got back in the vehicle and drove away from the scene of the crime.

But Buckinghamshire Council’s enforcement team tracked down Singh, who was interviewed under caution at Slough Police Station. He then admitted to the fly-tipping.

He said the roofing had come from work on his own home, and that he thought it was likely to contain asbestos. Asbestos fibres can cause cancer and other serious diseases if inhaled. 

Singh said he did not want to pay to dispose of it legally due to the cost.

Rubbish had been fly-tipped in the layby before, Singh added, and he thought that Buckinghamshire Council could pay to clean it away if he did the same with the roofing.

Singh refused to give any information on his accomplice.

Magistrates at High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court fined Singh £933 and ordered him to pay full costs of £1,672.72 as well as a victim surcharge of £373.

The total cost to him was £2,978.72.

Cllr Osibogun said: “Fly-tipping of any kind will not be tolerated in Buckinghamshire.

“To dump any waste, let alone suspected hazardous materials like those in the case and expect others to pick it up and foot the bill, is both reckless and selfish.”

“We hope this serves as a timely reminder to anyone else who thinks they can fly-tip in Buckinghamshire and get away with it.

“We will do everything within our means to find the culprits and see they are brought to justice.”