A man has been ordered to pay £300 after he admitted dumping a mattress and curtains on private land in Lowestoft.

Edward Foster, of St Margaret's Road, Lowestoft, appeared at Great Yarmouth Magistrates Court on Tuesday, February 14, where he pleaded guilty to making an illegal deposit of waste on land off Christchurch Square on June 24, 2016.

He was ordered by the court to pay a total of £300, comprising of a £120 fine, £150 costs, and victim surcharge of £30.

Foster was caught after Waveney Norse received a report from the police of an incident of fly-tipping on private land, which had been recorded on the security cameras of a local business.

His conviction followed an investigation by Suffolk Coastal and Waveney district councils' shared strategic waste and environmental enforcement team.

Speaking on behalf of the strategic waste and environmental enforcement team, Waveney district councillor Stephen Ardley, cabinet member for operational partnerships, said: 'We are pleased that this individual has been convicted by the court for this offence of fly-tipping in our district.

'Unfortunately this individual chose to ignore several attempts by our officers to contact him about the incident. As a result of his evasion, the council had no choice but to resort to court action to bring him to book, and he now has an even bigger bill to pay than he would have done if he had accepted an earlier offer of a fixed penalty notice, as well as now having a criminal record against his name.'

Mr Ardley added: 'Finally I would urge anyone who actually sees someone fly-tipping in our district to 'tip us off' as soon as possible so that we can investigate.'

To report fly-tipping in Waveney visit www.eastsuffolk.gov.uk/waste/fly-tipping/how-to-report-fly-tipping or call 01502 562111.

Since May 2016, local authorities have had the power to deal with offences of fly-tipping by way of issuing fixed penalty notices, which means that offenders can have the matter dealt with without them risking a criminal record. In Suffolk Coastal and Waveney, the level of the penalty is £200, or £120 for early payment.