Fly-tippers who made £2 million out of illegal rubbish mountain to pay back £39,000
A father and son, who made more than £2 million out of illegally dumping rubbish, have been ordered to repay £39,000.
Ranbir 'Nick' Singh, 45, and 65-year-old Balwant 'Bob' Singh Bagrhia stockpiled thousands of tons of refuse they had been paid to take to landfill.
The younger man, who lives at Goode Close, Oldbury, was jailed for 18 months at Wolverhampton Crown Court in January 2014 after pleading guilty to seven offences involving illegal dumping and contravening an environmental permit.
His father – from Victoria Road, Oldbury – who admitted four offences, received a 12 month suspended jail term.
Last year Bagrhia admitted making £1.26m in six years before the racket was uncovered. His son agreed that the sum in his case was £846,000.
But they have now shown a Proceeds of Crime hearing at Manchester Crown Court that most of the cash and assets discovered by forensic accountants to have passed through their hands were either legally earned or no longer available to be seized.
Baghia admitted making 'unexplained' withdrawals from various bank accounts, said Mr Nicholas Cole, prosecuting at an earlier hearing, who added: "The issue is the purpose to which the money was put."
The defendant maintained that he no longer had it.
Singh – who subsequently changed his first name to Ravinder by deed poll – had also been accused of withdrawing a total of £463,820 between October 28 2013 and January 10 2014 – days before he was jailed.
The father and son ran Langley Skip Hire that packed a site in Nelson Street, Oldbury with 1,200 tons of rubbish.
In September 2010 they expanded the operation and started to pour up to 23 lorry loads of waste a day into Butlers Yard in neighbouring Parsonage Street.
Fourteen months later it was filled with over 3,000 tons of refuse and they moved onto West Bromwich Street, Oldbury.
Kate Oates Environment Manager with the Environment Agency said after the Proceeds of Crime hearing: "The Environment Agency has continued to take legal action against Mr Ranbir Singh and Mr Balwant Baghria.
"The former was ordered to pay £29,000 while his father was told to pay £10,000."
Both face three months in jail if they do not come up with the cash before March 19.
