A Darlington man who claimed he had nothing to do with fly-tipping was caught out by a Facebook post by his firm admitting to collecting waste.

Alfie Chico Hunter’s business Propertyshield was found to be behind two fly-tips in the town, one on Snipe Lane on July 11 and another in the Brunton Street area on August 5.

The waste including broken furniture, packaging and building waste, was traced back to an address where the homeowner said they had paid Hunter, 20, £450 to remove rubbish.

Hunter, of Frosterley Drive, was interviewed under caution and denied any involvement, claiming his firm did not offer waste removal services.

But he was caught out by a post from his personal Facebook page sharing a Propertyshield post captioned, ‘Just finished a massive cleanup, took on a rubbish removal’.  He then said he believed an employee had done the work.

When shown evidence of payment to a bank account in the name of ‘Alfie Hunter’ for ‘garden clearance’, he initially gave no comment, then said he could not remember the sort code or account number.

Appearing at Peterlee Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday (October 23) he admitted two charges of failing to prevent fly-tipping and two of transporting waste without a licence.

His solicitor said that while Hunter did not personally deposit the waste, he accepted full responsibility as the company director.

He was fined £120 and ordered to pay costs of £541 and a victim surcharge of £48, totalling £709.

Darlington Councillor Amanda Riley said: “This case is another reminder that we will take action against those who flout the law.

Recommended reading:

Get more from The Northern Echo with a digital subscription. Get access for five months for just £5, or get 40% off an annual subscription with our latest offer. Click here.

“We would also remind householders that if you pay or ask someone, other than the council, to take your waste away, you should always check they have a waste carrier licence and ask for a waste transfer note. If your waste is fly-tipped, you could be fined along with the individual or company you used to remove it.

“Our staff work hard to keep our streets and back lanes clean and fly tipping of any kind will not be tolerated.”

The Environment Agency issues waste carrier licences. You can check if a company has a licence using the online register at https://bit.ly/CheckENV