The owner of a vehicle used to dump a large pile of waste at a Wolverhampton community site has been sentenced to 180 hours of unpaid work and disqualified from driving after being prosecuted by the council.
Brendon Garner was found guilty of controlling a vehicle responsible for fly-tipping offences after mixed garden, household and building waste was dumped at Blakenhall Resource Centre on Haggar Street.
Garner had denied the charge during an earlier trial but was convicted by magistrates. He was sentenced at Dudley Magistrates Court on 18 May 2026.
The court ordered Garner to complete 180 hours of unpaid work and undertake 20 rehabilitation activity days.
He was also disqualified from driving for six months, ordered to pay prosecution costs of £1,000 and his vehicle was made subject to a forfeiture order.
The prosecution forms part of the council’s ongoing Shop a Tipper campaign, under which images of individuals suspected of illegally dumping waste are shared publicly in a bid to identify offenders.
Residents whose information leads to a successful identification, resulting in Fixed Penalty Notices being issued and paid or a prosecution being secured, receive a £100 Enjoy Wolverhampton Gift Card.
CCTV footage leads to fly-tipping prosecution
The court heard that a report of fly tipping at Blakenhall Resource Centre was received on 29 April 2025, with CCTV showing a white van with obscured number plates reversing onto the site the previous evening before a man unloaded mixed household, garden and building waste, including an armchair.
Although the covered plates initially prevented officers from identifying the vehicle, a fly-tipping officer spotted a similar van on Deansfield Road the following day.
A faulty rear light matched the CCTV footage and police checks confirmed Garner was both the registered keeper and sole named driver on the insurance.
The van was later seized and investigators matched a number of distinguishing features to the vehicle captured on camera.
Councillor Qaiser Azeem, cabinet member for resident services at City of Wolverhampton Council, said: “This was quite an involved case for our officers with a lot of information gathering to bring a prosecution.
“Despite the evidence shown to Garner, he continued to deny any involvement in the fly tipping. But he was later found guilty by magistrates who were satisfied that the vehicle used to commit the offence was his.”
Garner also declined to comment when asked about a notebook found in the vehicle containing details of a waste job and the note “£250 DONE”.
Speak to industry features like the Environmental Services Association (ESA) about the solutions needed to tackle waste crime on a dedicated Roundtable at The Waste Leadership Summit on 15 October 2026. Find out more here.
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