Waste criminal forced to cough up £176,000
Bradford fly-tipper ordered to sell possessions to pay for waste crimes
02 Dec 2009
A prosecuted waste criminal has been ordered to pay back over £176,000 of illegal profits he made from illegitimate activities.
William John Peter Reidy, who was sentenced to a 16 month prison sentence in 2007 for illegal dumping of waste – including asbestos - was ordered to sell land and properties in order to pay over £176,000 to the Environment Agency at Bradford Crown Court. The court gave Reidy six months to pay, with a sentence of 27 months should he fail to pay on time.
The Proceeds of Crime Act (PoCA) application, used in cases where an offender has benefited financially from their crimes, was brought by the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), after a referral from the Environment Agency.
SOCA investigators estimate Reidy, of Bradford, benefited by £1,721,760 from his crimes. The Agency said its investigation had been highlighted in the BBC documentary Dumping On Britain, broadcast in May 2005.
Reidy was sentenced in March 2007 after Bradford Crown Court heard the 59-year-old’s Space Making Development (SMD) company was paid to take building waste away from companies across Yorkshire.
According to the Agency, the business was boosting profits by dumping the waste illegally.
Environment Agency officers investigated SMD’s activities after they became aware of illegal tipping on council-owned land at Low Moor, Bradford and put the site under surveillance.
The investigating team then traced vehicles seen dumping the waste back to SMD.
Officers estimated that in total, around 200 lorry loads of demolition waste had been dumped illegally while customers were given false documentation which allegedly proved that their waste had been disposed of legitimately.
Paul Glasby, environmental crime officer at the Environment Agency, said: “This is a great result. Waste crime is unacceptable. It puts people and the environment at risk and undermines legitimate businesses.
“Confiscating the proceeds of criminals – including assets used in waste crime such as trucks and heavy equipment – can often break their ability
to re-offend.”