Lib Dems Getting On With the Job: Three Arrested After Mass Fly-Tipping Raids

Three men have been arrested following a series of large-scale fly-tipping incidents across Maidstone and Medway — and Maidstone Borough Council, where Liberal Democrats are in administration, helped make it happen.

In a co-ordinated multi-agency operation with Medway Council and Kent Police's Rural Task Force, a vehicle linked to multiple dumping offences was stopped on 9 February. The three men were arrested in South Ockenden, Essex, interviewed by officers from both councils, and released under investigation. Their vehicle has been seized and impounded.

The arrests relate to an estimated 380 tonnes of illegally dumped waste across sites including Yelstead Lane, Maidstone, and Shawstead Road, Gillingham — with clean-up costs expected to exceed £100,000. Investigators are working to establish whether these incidents are connected to further fly-tips across Kent.

Make no mistake — large-scale fly-tipping like this is no longer just antisocial behaviour. It has become a serious criminal industry, with organised gangs illegally disposing of construction, commercial and industrial waste to avoid the legitimate costs of proper disposal. The damage to our countryside, green spaces and waterways is severe and, in many cases, irreparable. Tackling it effectively demands exactly the kind of joined-up, multi-agency response that this operation represents.

This is what getting on with the job looks like.

Lib Dem Cabinet Member for Environmental Services and Enforcement, Clive English, was unequivocal:

"This kind of organised environmental crime causes damage to our countryside and places a huge financial burden on local authorities. These arrests show that we take this issue extremely seriously and will not hesitate to take action against anyone who fly-tips in our borough."

Maidstone Borough Council's Don't Mess with Maidstone campaign — launched last year to crack down on environmental crime — is delivering results. This operation demonstrates the power of partnership working and the commitment of the Liberal Democrats in the administration to protecting our communities and countryside.

Fly-tipping is not a victimless crime. We will come after you.