A fly-tipping gang who made £500,000 from running a secret dump that exposed a village to toxic fumes has been ordered to pay back just £110,000.
The group of 12 men had been previously incarcerated for abandoning 11,000 tons of waste at a site equivalent in size to a football pitch in Long Bennington, Lincolnshire.
Lorry-loads of shredded refuse were ‘frequently’ transported to the tip where it was incinerated and buried each day, generating half a million pounds for the group.
Alarming footage that assisted the Environment Agency (EA) in capturing the gang shows waste being burned at the illegal landfill, producing huge clouds of smoke.
When sentencing the crooks to a collective 11 years in October last year, the judge lambasted them for putting locals at risk from noxious fumes.
And now, the defendants have been ordered to pay back a mere £112,338 to compensate for the damage wreaked by their destructive scheme.
Officials believe clean-up at the site, which operated near people’s homes over the course of seven months, will cost a staggering £1.2million.
EA officers dedicated months to gathering intelligence on the illegal dump before eventually conducting a raid in April 2020 with the assistance of Lincolnshire Police.
The group of 12 men had been previously incarcerated for abandoning 11,000 tons of waste at the site (pictured) equivalent in size to a football pitch in Long Bennington, Lincolnshire
Lorry-loads of shredded refuse were ‘frequently’ transported to the tip where it was incinerated and buried each day (pictured), generating half a million pounds for the group
Shocking footage (pictured) which helped the Environment Agency (EA) nail the gang shows waste being incinerated at the illegal dump, giving off enormous clouds of smoke
They caught an excavator and a waste-depositing lorry in the act, leading to two immediate arrests.
But overall, 12 people and one company were charged with either knowingly causing the operation of the illegal waste site or knowingly causing the deposit of waste.
Ten pleaded guilty and the remaining three defendants were found guilty following an eight-week trial at Nottingham Crown Court.
Sentencing the gang last year, His Honour Judge Coupland said condemned the defendants for causing harm of the ‘highest level’ with their toxic endeavours.
He said the crime was ‘deliberately concealed’ using falsified paperwork – and the fact they did it repeatedly and earned money from it made it more serious.
And the crooks have now paid for it again at the proceeds of crime hearings at Nottingham Crown Court last Friday, a type of trial for depriving criminals of any ill-gotten gains.
Waste broker and dealer Robert Malone has now been fined £1,165 and received a confiscation order of £45,948.
Daniel Lippitt, an operator who deposited waste at the site, received a confiscation order of £10,000.
Now, the defendants have been ordered to pay back a total of £112,338 to compensate for the damage wreaked by their destructive scheme (pictured)
Luke Woodward and Sonial Surpal, lorry drivers who deposited waste at the site, received confiscation orders of £1,111 and £16,511 respectively.
Site operative Nathan Jones received a confiscation order of £1,180.
Last month, transport company Fletcher Plant Limited were also sentenced after they were found guilty of failing in their duty of care to establish the site they delivered waste to was operating legally.
The firm received a confiscation order of £37,587.
The EA says it will now bring a Proceeds of Crime Award hearing against the main offenders, family of three Paul, Judith and Joshua Canner, who ran the illegal site.
This hearing brought by the government body will also include landowners Marc Greenfield and James Baggaley.
Peter Stark, EA enforcement team leader, said: ‘Waste crime blights communities, and it’s only right that those who seek to profit from it should have their ill-gotten gains confiscated.
‘This is a cautionary tale for anyone tempted to try to operate outside the law.
Officials believe clean-up at the site (pictured), which operated near people’s homes over the course of seven months, will cost a staggering £1.2million
‘We have doggedly pursued all the offenders who contributed to the illegal waste site at Long Bennington, and we are satisfied with the outcome of today’s hearing.’
Money the EA receives from proceeds of crime hearings is used ‘to strengthen tools and teams who tackle waste criminals’.
Leigh Edlin, EA area director for Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire, has previously said: ‘This was a serious illegal waste site which was highly organised and involved multiple offenders.
‘Those involved sought to profit from Covid restrictions at the cost of the environment and by inflicting misery on the local community.
‘The site and its operators had a major impact on legitimate businesses and our regulatory work.
‘Our enforcement teams will continue to tackle serious illegal waste crime by working with partners such as Lincolnshire Police, fire services and councils, as we did in this case to hold those responsible to account.’
At sentencing last year, Paul, Judith and Joshua Canner were respectively sentenced to 26 months, 16 months, and 16 months.
Mr Surpal and Mr Woodward, who pleaded guilty to depositing waste at the site, were sentenced to 13 and 11 months’ imprisonment.
EA officers spent months gathering intelligence about the illegal dump (pictured) before eventually carrying out a raid in April 2020 alongside Lincolnshire Police
Mr Wainwright and Mr Jones were both sentenced to 16 months in prison for disposing of the waste at the site.
Mr Chapman and Mr Lippitt were sentenced to 12 months and 9 months imprisonment, both suspended for 18 months.
Landowners Mr Baggaley and Mr Greenfield, who both ‘knowingly permitted the operation of the illegal waste site’, were sentenced later, in December.
They were jailed for 20 months and 19 months respectively – but both suspended for 18 months.
Anyone who suspects a company is involved in illegal waste activity can call EA’s 24-hour hotline on 0800 80 70 60.
People can also report it anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
