Businessman facing jail for waste dumping on farm

Businessman facing jail for waste dumping on farm

28 October 2015

A BALLYNAHINCH businessman has been warned by a judge that he faces a “significant custodial sentence’’ for storing over 2,000 tonnes of illegal waste on his land.

John Paul Braniff (34) appeared at Downpatrick Crown Court on Wednesday and admitted two charges of treating controlled waste in a manner likely to cause to pollution to the environment or damage to human health.

The former skip hire owner also pleaded guilty to charges of unlawfully dumping controlled waste and keeping controlled waste on his land.

The offences were committed over a three month period between August and October 2011 at two adjacent properties near his home at Carnreagh Road.

The court heard that Braniff had previously been ordered by the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) to stop keeping waste on his land but these warnings were ignored.

Prosecution lawyer Sam Magee said that during follow up inspections in 2011 by the NIEA, officials found further piles of both commercial and household waste on the land.

He said that among the waste materials found on his land was asbestos, along with tyres, plastics, building materials and rubble.

The prosecutor added that during the inspections, a number of fires had been burning which had left an “acrid smell’’ in the air.

Judge Piers Grant was told that in total “2,200 tonnes of mixed commercial and household waste was deposited on his land’’ which had a total loss to the public purse in landfill tax and VAT of around £252,000.

Mr Magee said that in 2009, Braniff was operating Amber Skip hire and had been served notices not to keep waste on his land and to remove it.

The court was told that Braniff told NIEA officials that “he didn’t care if there were court cases and he would not removing the waste within 30 days’’.

Judge Grant heard that because of the illegal dumping, a test showed that sulphate levels in the underground water table were almost one-and-a-half-times the standards for drinking water.

Mr Magee said that the prosecution were also making an application for costs in the case for £4,182,66.

The court was told Braniff had 31 previous convictions, including one for handling stolen goods for which he received a two year suspended prison sentence in 2014.

Defence barrister Alan Blackburn said Braniff was a “hard working man with a young family’’ who had created employment in the Ballynahinch area.

He said the offences Braniff had pleaded guilty to were “reckless as opposed to deliberate’’.

Saying that the offences were “highly reckless’’, Judge Piers Grant said he was making a confiscation order against Braniff for £108,350 which would include the sale of a property valued at £46,350 and along with £62,000 in cash.

The judge told the defendant: “It is evident that a significant custodial sentence is going to be imposed.’’

Sentencing was adjourned until next month and Braniff was remanded in custody until he was able to pay his own bail of £1,000 and a surety of £1,000 was lodged into court.

Judge Grant also ordered him to sign bail twice a week at Downpatrick PSNI station.