A convict who blighted land near Burton by running an illegal waste site has had to sell his own home to pay for the land to be cleaned up.

Robert Murphy was jailed for seven months in May 2015 at Stafford Crown Court for operating a rubbish site off the A38 at Egginton, for which he did not have a permit.

As part of his sentence, a confiscation order was made, requiring the 49-year-old to pay compensation of £20,793 to the landowners – an "elderly and vulnerable" couple who were faced with a large clean-up bill.

The site was full of putrid rubbish
The site was full of putrid rubbish

The Environment Agency was also awarded prosecution costs of £10,000.

However, Murphy, of Carver Road, Burton, failed to make any of the payments and was jailed for a further 12 months as a result.

Following further enforcement hearings at Birmingham Magistrates' Court, he was ordered to pay the costs in full and has had to sell his home to afford it.

Between January 3, 2013 and June 28, 2014, Murphy used the land to deposit, store and burn large quantities of mixed waste including metal, wood, electrical items and construction and demolition waste.

An Environment Agency officer involved in the case said: "This has been a long and involved case but it demonstrates that the Environment Agency is determined to tackle waste crime.

Waste left by Robert Murphy
Waste left by Robert Murphy

"We hope this case serves as a message to those involved that we won’t stop the fight against this blight, and that it acts as a deterrent against those who undermine legitimate businesses within the industry.

"This is a serious issue diverting as much as £1 billion per annum from legitimate business and treasury. Since April 2011 the Environment Agency has invested £65.2 million in tackling it.

"We urge any landowners, farmers or members of the public who find these sites to call us immediately on our 24-hour free incident hotline number 0800 80 70 60 or make an anonymous report to Crimestoppers on 0800 555111."