Devon man Christopher Garrett was jailed for 32 months on 14 July after he dumped 1000’s of tonnes of waste, together with asbestos, on land by his residence, in a floodplain close to Kingsteignton in Devon. He was additionally ordered to pay a Proceeds of Crime Act confiscation sum of over £200,000, because the Setting Company reported.
Garrett is considered the worst offender the EA has seen in Devon and Cornwall for the amount of asbestos he illegally disposed of.
Exeter Crown Courtroom heard that Garrett, aged 64, of Little Lindridge Cottage, Kingsteignton, repeatedly imported waste onto his land, regardless of being prosecuted beforehand and receiving a number of warnings from the Setting Company.
Following the 14 July listening to he was sentenced to a complete of 32 months in jail, of which he’ll serve half, after pleading responsible to fees of operating a waste facility with out a allow, and for disposing of waste materials, specifically asbestos, in a fashion prone to hurt the surroundings or human well being.
The Courtroom heard that between July 2018 and Could 2022 round 12,000 tonnes of managed waste – blended development and demolition waste – was deposited on land designated as a floodplain at Garrett’s residence, alongside the A380 twin carriageway. He burnt a few of it and buried giant portions of Asbestos Containing Supplies (ACM), posing a danger to the surroundings and to human well being.
The investigation established that Garrett had obtained tons of of 1000’s of kilos for the unlawful tipping and that it might value no less than £2.5M to remediate the positioning. His mixed monetary profit from the offending was put at £2.88M, together with the remediation prices. He was ordered to pay again the worth of his accessible belongings of £200,885.
In 2016 Garrett had obtained a two-year suspended jail sentence for permitting asbestos waste to be disposed on the web site with out a allow, however in 2019, the Setting Company heard that he was once more importing waste to his land.
Regardless of a number of warnings and an enforcement discover, Garrett ignored all directions to cease his unlawful actions. Officers visited the positioning a number of occasions, together with on one event with a police escort due the hostile nature of the defendant in the direction of Setting Company employees.
Garrett was prosecuted in early 2022 for an offence below the Public Order Act for his behaviour in the direction of Setting Company officers.
The Setting Company then carried out a surveillance operation to determine the true scale of his unlawful actions.
In Could 2022 a warrant was obtained permitting a search of Garrett’s property and in depth web site investigations utilizing heavy equipment. Luggage containing asbestos have been discovered buried within the floor and the positioning was riddled with smaller fragments of this hazardous waste. Data and paperwork obtained by Enforcement Officers established that Garrett had imported waste to his land throughout the interval of his suspended sentence, and that he had made 1000’s of kilos from his unlawful actions. He was arrested and interviewed by Setting Company officers however answered “no comment” to all questions.
Throughout sentencing, Decide Adkin informed Garrett: “You were unable to resist the lure of significant sums of money” and described the offences as “industrial scale environmental contamination committed by an individual.”
Following the listening to, an Setting Company spokesperson mentioned: “Garrett is a repeat offender who confirmed no take care of the surroundings or human well being. He took no discover of the earlier warnings given by the courts and the Setting Company and imported hazardous waste, burying it to make a fast revenue.
“We are extremely pleased that he has now been brought to book and are working with our partners to establish what will happen to the site going forward. We would like to remind everyone who produces, transports or disposes of waste that they have a duty of care to ensure it doesn’t end up at a site like this.”
Anybody who suspects unlawful waste exercise can report it anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
