TWO Basildon residents who dumped rubbish in the streets that they live on have admitted flytipping charges and been hit with fines.

Karen Cummings, 48, of Little Searles, Basildon, deposited items including a roll of carpet and two drawers in her street.

Another women, Sinead Brown, 30, of Malgraves, Pitsea, deposited waste including three large cardboard boxes near to her property.

Both women appeared in court and admitted flytipping offences.

Councillor Andrew Baggott chairman of the enforcement and public order committee, insisted Basildon Council is taking a “zero-tolerance” approach and offenders will found and brought to justice.

He said: “In these cases, both defendants felt like it was okay to dump rubbish and cause mess in the area they live.

“This isn’t okay, it never will be, and we’ve proved again that the council has a zero-tolerance approach to this.

“This should act as a warning to any other residents who feel they have a right to do similar.

“Book a special collection for us to collect up to ten items, take your items to the Barleylands Recycling Centre or an alternative similar location, and dispose of your waste correctly.

“Otherwise, we’ll investigate it and you could face the same consequences as the two defendants here.”

Ms Cummings pleaded guilty to the offences and was sentenced at Basildon Magistrates Court on October 5 to a £200 fine, £105 in court costs, and a £34 victim surcharge.

Ms Brown was arrested and bailed, and on October 5 she pleaded guilty to depositing controlled waste and was sentenced to a £120 fine, £212 in court costs, and a £34 victim surcharge.

Both residents admitted a charge of dumping controlled waste under a section of the Environmental Protection Act.

It was revealed in February this year that Basildon has almost three times more flytipping incidents than anywhere else in south Essex.

Government data released shows that there were 3,451 incidents of fly-tipping in the borough for the 2019/20 financial year.

To book a special collection, residents are asked to visit: www.basildon.gov.uk/specialcollections