Fly tippers convicted after being blocked in by brave residents in Warwickshire and made to clean up their mess

As we reported back on February 7, the culprits arrived at the Packington Estate on Maxstone Lane near Meriden and thought it would be easy to dump a huge pile of rubbish on the land and flee in their vans.

But the nearby workers on the estate and residents bravely blocked the selfish offenders from getting away - and police were soon on the scene to catch them.

As part of their punishment, police made them reload the two vans with all the rubbish dumped - and to make the day even sweeter, the farmer's wife presented the officers with homemade cake and a cup of tea as they watched the fly tippers clear up their mess!

On May 10, the two men were sentenced at Leamington Spa Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to charges of depositing waste without a permit.

This was thanks to a joint investigation between Warwickshire Police and Solihull Council’s Regulatory Services Team.

Ionut Bancunlea, 33 of Claremont Road in Smethwick, pleaded guilty to four charges of depositing waste without a permit.

He was given a community order with a 12-month 150-hour unpaid work requirement and 10 days of rehabilitation activities.

Bancunlea is also required to pay compensation amounting to £1,565.84, as well as a victims’ surcharge of £114 and £85 costs to the Crown Prosecution Service.

Adrian Bivolaru, 34 of Parkhill Road in Smethwick, pleaded guilty to two charges of depositing waste without a permit.

He was given a community order with a 12-month 80-hour unpaid work requirement and 10 days of rehabilitation activities.

Bivolaru is required to pay £200 worth of compensation, as well as £114 victims’ surcharge and £85 costs to the Crown Prosecution Service.

At the time of the offences, a social media post from the Operational Patrol Unit showed pictures from the clean-up and led to other fly tipping offences being reported and linked to Bancunlea and Bivolaru.

The officers were also contacted by Peter Barker from Solihull Council’s Regulatory Services Team, who recognised the men as having been involved in offences committed in the West Midlands.

Sgt Simms of the Rural Crime Team said “Dropping waste at the side of the road ruins our beautiful countryside and wastes precious resources from our local councils that could be better invested elsewhere to clean it up.

“It also stops businesses like farms from being able to operate while the owners deal with the mess, often leaving them out of pocket as well.

“We are very happy that the OPU were quick to assist landowners and able to catch them in the act on this occasion, and we share in the satisfaction that Banunclea and Bivolaru were made to clean up at least one of their messes.

“I’m extremely pleased that the Rural Crime Team (who progressed the investigation with assistance from Solihull Council and concerned members of public) have seen these offenders being suitably punished.”

A Solihull Council spokesperson said: “In Solihull, we take pride in our community. Protecting and enhancing our natural environment has always been a priority and it is important to keep it safe and pleasant for residents to live in.

“Solihull Council works hard to ensure the areas are clean and well-maintained. We’re pleased that this fine and community order has been issued and that fly-tipping cases are taken seriously.

“We will continue to prosecute anti-social crime such as fly-tipping to the fullest extent where possible and would urge residents to report fly-tipping via the council’s website.”

What to do if you see fly tipping in action

If you witness an incident of fly-tipping in progress, you should call the police, including any information that might be useful to an investigation like descriptions and registrations of the vehicles used in your report.

Cleaning up the results of fly tipping is the responsibility of local councils, and if you discover incidents of fly tipping you should report it to them directly – a quick way to check how to report fly tipping in your area is to enter the postcode of the incident on www.gov.uk/report-flytipping