Van used by 'removal specialists' crushed after dumping waste on public streets

By Chris Young
Published 31st Aug 2022, 16:30 BST
A van used by a group advertising themselves as waste removal specialists, who were in fact dumping the waste on public streets, has been crushed.

The blue Ford Transit was seized by Bradford Council in March, and has since been deemed as unroadworthy and with no resale value.

The van was seized by the Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team in a joint operation with West Yorkshire Police in relation to multiple fly-tipping offences in West Yorkshire.

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Enforcement Officers were given information that individuals using the vehicle were advertising removal and waste collection services on social media, but then fly-tipping the waste they had collected.

A van used by a group advertising themselves as waste removal specialists, who were in fact dumping the waste on public streets, has been crushed.A van used by a group advertising themselves as waste removal specialists, who were in fact dumping the waste on public streets, has been crushed.
A van used by a group advertising themselves as waste removal specialists, who were in fact dumping the waste on public streets, has been crushed.

CCTV footage of the van was obtained showing the occupants dumping waste at the door to a business and on streets in the Bradford district.

Evidence found in the fly-tipping uncovered the scale of the operation and identified waste from households and businesses from across West Yorkshire.

Working with Environmental Enforcement Officers in the neighbouring councils, it was identified that the vehicle had been used by the occupants to fly-tip in their areas and their investigations identified the same vehicle and individuals.

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The van was seized and the investigation is ongoing, with Bradford Council working closely with Enforcement Officers from neighbouring councils to gather further evidence to enable prosecution of those involved.

Councillor Sarah Ferriby, Bradford Council’s Executive Member for Healthy People and Places, said: “Seizing and crushing vehicles involved in fly-tipping is one way of preventing it happening again. Taking this action proves that we are committed to doing as much as we can to get these rogue operators off the road.

“Anyone using people to get rid of waste must check the carrier’s documents. Otherwise you could end up with a fine if the waste is fly-tipped.

“Householders have a legal duty of care to ensure that their waste carrier is registered and legitimate waste carriers will be happy to produce the relevant documents.”

Anyone who sees fly-tipping taking place is asked to note down as many details as possible, including vehicle registration numbers and inform the council.