Man fined £6k for fly-tipping piles of household waste in Birmingham park

A Solihull man who fly-tipped doors, carpets, rugs and other household waste in a popular Birmingham park has been fined more than £6,000.

Adnan Qazi dumped the piles of rubbish including mattresses, bed bases, a chair, fridge and cardboard boxes in Scribers Lane, leading to Trittiford Mill Park, in Billesley.

His illegal actions were captured on CCTV and he was successfully prosecuted under the Environmental Protection Act.

Birmingham Magistrates Court heard on Wednesday (5 February) how three men were seen dumping the rubbish from a van onto land at Scribers Lane on 15 April 2019.

The incident was caught on camera and investigations led to a rental van which has been hired by Qazi.

Qazi, who pleaded not guilty, claimed that he was unaware of the incident because he had lent the van to an acquaintance. But further enquiries were not able to trace the alleged acquaintance that Qazi had identified.

Qazi, 30, of Berkeley Road, was found responsible for the rubbish dumping and fined £2,769. He was also ordered to pay £360 compensation for the cost of clearing the rubbish, a victim surcharge of £170 and prosecution costs of £2,709 – a total of £6,008.

Councillor John O’Shea , Cabinet Member for Street Scene and Parks, said: “Trittiford Mill Park is an important wildlife habitat and has nesting sites for all sorts of birds, including migratory species from across the world and is also a valued community resource for residents of all ages.

“There is even an active allotment club directly opposite the area where the dumping took place.

“Anti-social and criminal behaviour such as this damages our much-loved parks and open spaces and will not be tolerated.

“This individual has absolutely no regard for Birmingham’s environment, so I am delighted we have secured another conviction that underlines our commitment to bring fly-tippers to justice.”

Birmingham City Council can only prosecute when credible evidence, that meets the criminal burden of proof, is available.

Anyone with information on any cases of fly-tipping is urged to contact BCC at www.birmingham.gov.uk/flytipping or SMBC: https://www.solihull.gov.uk/Resident/Parking-travel-roads/street-care/flytipping