A WOMAN has been given a hefty fine after being found guilty of fly-tipping. 

Lisa Jane Hopkins, 51, of Goddard Court, Winnersh, was convicted of fly-tipping at Reading Magistrates Court on October 23 following a trial and fined more than £1,000. 

The Magistrates court heard that an environmental control officer found household waste in Churchill Drive, Winnersh, on top of a grass verge.

The litter included a cardboard box, metal framework, wooden decking, a bicycle tyre inner-tube and a blind. 

Officers found that a packaging label inside the waste was traced to Hopkins' home address.

Despite an original 'not guilty' plea, Hopkins admitted dumping the waste during a police interview. 

Hopkins' defence was that she and her family had been dumping waste in that spot for many years, and the council had been collecting it, and claimed that other residents had been dumping waste in the same spot. 

Magistrates fined Hopkins £461, with £650 in prosecution costs and £46 in victim surcharge, leaving the total at £1,157.

Cllr Norman Jorgensen, Executive Member for Environment said: “This case should serve to act as a reminder to all residents that fly tipping offences will not be tolerated and will be investigated by Wokingham Borough Council. 

"Dumping household waste at the bottom of a tree and not in the prescribed bags has resulted in the lady in question receiving a criminal record for her actions. 

"The Council has a statutory duty to collect illegally dumped or fly tipped waste, but this does mean it is acceptable. If you witness any waste being illegally dumped please call 0118 974 6000 or 0800 212 111 outside of office hours.”