The large metal containers were provided by Southwark for the collection waste and recycling from communal properties, primarily flats, and are worth hundreds of pounds brand new.
In recent years, Southwark has reported several of the bins going missing and the council met on the issue as far back as January 2020.
While metal bins are often stolen for their scrap value, their discovery in Kent has sparked fears about the involvement of organised crime. The police are investigating, the council says.
It is understood the Metropolitan Police is now asking if other London boroughs have had bins stolen to work out the scale of the issue. It is understood they are working with Kent Police on the issue.
‘Blight’
It has been reported locally that estates in Bermondsey, Southwark, have been left without bins after first reporting the issue “months ago”.
Cllr Catherine Rose, cabinet member for leisure, parks, streets and clean air, said: “We are working with more than one police force to try and stop the theft of a number of large waste collection containers from our council estates.
“Some containers have been identified and recovered and police investigations are ongoing. There is a high cost of replacement and impact on the residents who need these bins.
“This is not a victimless crime. It blights people’s lives. We will work with the police and use all powers possible to support prosecution of the offenders.”
Theft
The issue of bin theft is not new and has been reported by councils in many parts of the UK over recent years.
Hammersmith & Fulham estimated stolen bins cost them around £30,000 a year back in 2012.
Last year, Coventry estimated that the cost of replacing 11 stolen steel alloy bins from its park would “run well into four figures”. The council added that it felt the thieves “wouldn’t even get that much”.
Even plastic bins were reportedly stolen amid reports of a “new drug craze”, where some individuals burn the containers and sniff the fumes.
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