Prison for prolific fly-tipper who trashed Hillingdon green spaces

Messes left by serial fly-tipper | Hillingdon Today
One of the many messes left by serial fly-tipper / Hillingdon Council

A serial fly-tipper who dumped rubbish across Hillingdon, Sutton and Buckinghamshire, has been sentenced to 21 months in prison and had his van seized, following a joint prosecution.

Hillingdon Council teamed up with Buckinghamshire Council and Sutton Council to bring to an end Dean Stanley’s ‘deliberate and flagrant’ campaign of dumping.

Stanley, from Iver, Buckinghamshire, admitted 17 counts of fly-tipping, committed between March 2019 and January 2020. He was sentenced at Aylesbury Crown Court last Friday (25 February).

The court heard Stanley would opportunistically collect waste – including white electrical items, furniture and kitchen units, doors, beds, mattresses and building waste – then dump the items in open spaces, including children’s playgrounds, roadside verges as well as other people’s driveways.

Stanley had been linked to the crimes after leaving his personal details with people he removed waste for. His two distinctive Ford Transit tipper vans – one white, one red – were linked to him through insurance and DVLA records. These were often seen by eye-witnesses or caught on CCTV footage taking and/or dumping the waste.

Hillingdon Council pooled legal resources with the other two authorities to build a strong case against Stanley, including photographs and CCTV footage. Victims also provided statements and photographs.

Cllr John Riley, Hillingdon Council’s Cabinet Member for Public Safety and Transport, said: “This is a fantastic piece of partnership working that has ended Mr Stanley’s campaign of contempt and utter disregard for the boroughs where he was dumping and their residents.

“Bringing fly-tippers to justice can be tricky for local authorities as they’ll often act under cover of darkness and won’t leave anything that identifies them. In the case of Mr Stanley he was so driven by profiting from dumping waste, he let his guard down.

“We’re very grateful for the help of our colleagues in Sutton and Buckinghamshire and the residents who have helped us make this case a success. This sentence should serve as a warning that we will take the strongest possible course of action against those who choose to use our beautiful borough as a dumping ground.”

Stanley was sentenced to 21 months for each of the 16 offences in Hillingdon and Buckinghamshire, to run concurrently. He was further sentenced to 14 months for the offence in Sutton, also to run concurrently. The court also ordered that his white van be seized.

A second defendant, Bradley Caswell, from Burnham, Slough, appeared at the same hearing and was convicted on one count of fly-tipping in Long Lane, Hillingdon, alongside Stanley, on 29 October 2019. Caswell was given a £500 fine, ordered to pay £720 compensation, court costs of £500 and a court surcharge.