An East London restaurant has been fined over £7,000 after dumping food orders and catering oils drums on the street outside.
The restaurant, Watan, was identified by enforcement officers at Redbridge council as the perpetrator behind fly-tips discovered on Hampton Road, Ilford.
Officers from the council were first alerted to the fly-tipped mess following complaints from local people. The waste included black bags of food waste, packaging, catering oil drums and food orders linked to the restaurant. The items were all reportedly left against a side wall of the restaurant, on the street outside.
The investigation led to restaurant owner Bismillah Ullah being given a criminal record as a result of the prosecution. The 36-year-old from Church Road in Hayes, Middlesex, attended a trial at Barkingside Magistrates Court on April 29, where he and the business were found guilty of fly-tipping charges. The company was fined as a result of the verdict and was ordered to pay the court and council costs totalling £7,150.
The authority said: “The majority of local businesses help keep the neighbourhoods they serve tidy by disposing of their commercial waste properly, so when Redbridge enforcement officers were alerted to reports of commercial waste being left on the street, they wasted no time investigating.”
It added: “Not only was the rubbish creating an eyesore in the community, it was also likely to attract vermin to the local area.”
Labour Councillor Khayer Chowdhury, Redbridge Cabinet Member for Enforcement and Community Safety, said: “The failure to correctly store commercial waste presents a threat to the environment and public health, as well as being an eyesore for local communities. We all have a responsibility to ensure our streets and neighbourhoods are clean, and that includes businesses.”
He added: “Fly-tipping commercial waste on our streets is unacceptable. We have zero tolerance for those who treat our borough disrespectfully, and this prosecution is testament to our commitment to holding law breakers to account for their behaviour.”
Redbridge Council has said all fly-tips reported to the authority are recorded and investigated, with enforcement action being taken if evidence is found. The council aims to clear all recorded fly-tips on council land and the highway within 24 hours of it being reported.
Individuals can submit evidence of fly-tips, perpetrators or their vehicles on the council’s Report It page. The authority’s Love Clean Streets app can also be used to report fly-tips, missed bin collections and potholes.
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