Batterham pleaded guilty to dumping waste at Sherwood Pines beauty spot and was fined by Newark and Sherwood District Council

Rogue waste operators are being warned they face the full force of the law after the successful prosecution of a man who touted his services on social media.

Corey Batterham, 24, must pay more than £3,000 after pleading guilty to dumping waste at a beauty spot, highlighting the penalties imposed on offenders for their actions ­— a message spelled out in a Newark and Sherwood District Council’s campaign.

Batterham, from Newark, failed to attend court in the first instance, before being arrested by police and was brought before Nottingham Magistrates’ Court.

Magistrates were told Batterham had dumped polystyrene, cardboard, building materials and household rubbish on a roadway at Sherwood Pines after being paid by Jay Boby, a Newark builder, to dispose of the waste.

The court heard Boby had spotted a posting on Facebook from Batterham offering waste removal.

Council inspectors were able to trace the rubbish back to the original owner.

Batterham was ordered to pay a £1,900 fine, £1,000 legal costs and £181 victim surcharge.

At an earlier hearing Boby, 27, who had failed to take the appropriate steps to prevent rubbish being fly-tipped, was also was fined for failing to use a licensed waste carrier.

He was ordered to pay £250, reduced to £167 for an early guilty plea, with a £30 victim surcharge and £150 legal costs, totalling £347 to be paid in 14 days.

Andrew Kirk, from the council’s waste management, said: “We welcome the outcome of the case as it sends out a stern warning to fly-tippers who are being targeted in the district council’s Not in Newark and Sherwood campaign.

“We take fly-tipping very seriously and we will seek the toughest punishments possible where the evidence supports a prosecution.

“Not only is fly-tipping harmful to the community and the environment, it results in a considerable cost to the public purse to clear up.”

As part of Not in Newark and Sherwood, the council has challenged local social media sites, not to promote illegal tip run requests and services.