Serious & organised waste criminals targeting Scouts owned land
There is a criminal group who are targeting charity and not for profit landowners in the Southeast. Offenders have targeted land owned by the Scouts.
The offenders’ method involves making an unsolicited approach to charity landowners in person/phone call or email offering free or low-cost landscaping/resurfacing, sometimes in exchange for storing some ‘soil’ on your land.
The material is waste that has been processed, and to the untrained eye can look like a pile of soil. The cost of clearance falls to the landowner including the landfill tax, which can be substantial. A charity site has been targeted this year in Berkshire and approximately 100,000 tonnes of processed waste has been tipped. The offenders are no longer tipping on those sites, so it is likely that they are scoping for new land. Two individuals were arrested for these offences on the 19th June 2024 and are currently on bail whilst investigative enquiries continue.
The offenders are experienced and well organised, so please encourage your staff and volunteers if they are approached by individuals or companies offering to do free or low-cost landscaping, resurfacing or similar, be suspicious and to report their concerns promptly to the Environment Agency (0800 80 70 60) or via Crimestoppers.
Report any concerns you have via Crimestoppers (online form or tel: 0800 555 111
If you have urgent concerns please use Crimestoppers, the Environment Agency Incident Hotline 0800 80 70 60 (24/7) or if necessary, the Police (offenders on the site at the time).
More information is available on the flyer below.
