A Dagenham restaurant has been fined over £5,000 after it was caught fly tipping on the public highway on two separate occasions.



On the mornings of 16 and 19 September 2019, council enforcement officers discovered an accumulation of bagged waste on Goresbrook Road, Dagenham.



After looking through the rubbish, the officer concerned found a large number of receipts for Balti Cottage, a restaurant which was in close proximity to the fly-tipped waste.



After further investigation, the officer interviewed the business under caution and concluded that it was responsible for two offences of fly tipping in accordance with Section 33 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.



The restaurant was issued with Fixed Penalty Notices of £400 each as an opportunity to discharge liability from prosecution, however they appealed them.

The appeals were rejected as there was sufficient evidence to support the penalties that were issued.



The business then opted to not pay the penalties and was summoned to Barking Magistrates Court on 31 August 2021.



The owner of the business pleaded not guilty and said that they did not know how their waste came to be deposited on the public highway, suggesting that somebody may have emptied it from their bins and dumped it.



The business was found guilty and was ordered to pay £1,700 for the first offence, £2,000 for the second offence, £1,345 in costs to Barking and Dagenham Council and a Victim Surcharge of £170 – totalling £5,215.



Councillor Margaret Mullane, Cabinet Member for Enforcement and Community Safety said: “Businesses have a responsibility to dispose of their waste correctly and this restaurant has failed to do so.



“We won’t stand for anyone making our streets look dirty, whether that be a resident, a shop or a restaurant and if we find out they’re fly tipping, we will take enforcement action.”