Fly-tippers dump tons of rubbish in quiet cul-de-sac

Fly-tippers use boltcutters to open site and dump tons of rubbish to the horror of residents in quiet cul-de-sac

• Residents say they saw two men use boltcutters to gain entry to the building site
• They reported dozens of trucks dumping waste there for the next three days
• Police ‘told locals there was nothing they could do about the illegal entry’ 

A quiet North London cul-de-sac has been left looking like a tip after a sea of building waste was dumped by fly-tippers in balaclavas on a site destined for 45 new homes.

Residents of Grove Road and Massey Close in New Southgate were left horrified after watching trucks packed sky-high with rubbish pull into the quiet street to dump their loads in less than four days.

The site, which used to be home to a care home, will now have to be cleared by developers. It’s expected to cost site owners Newlon Housing Trust over £10,000 to have the site emptied. 

Locals reported seeing two men, thought to be in their mid-30s, using a bolt-cutter to gain entry to the site shortly before 6pm on April 11.

They then saw dozens of trucks per day, all filled with rubbish, arriving at the site and dumping their waste before driving off again.

Residents of Grove Road and Massey Close in New Southgate were left horrified after watching trucks packed sky-high with rubbish pull into the quiet street to dump their loads in less than four days

Residents are worried about the coming summer heat, adding the site is already filled with pests

The fly-tippers are said to have left the site for good on Saturday 15, by which time two police cars were stationed nearby. 

For now, 24/7 security guards with dogs have been rushed in to stop any more damage.

Multiple locals are said to have called police as they saw the men appearing to enter the site illegally, but claim they were told by officers that they would need video evidence for anything to be done.

It was revealed last week that fly-tippers avoid prosecution at the highest rate in London, with just 0.05 percent of 406,000 reported cases leading to a prosecution.

Residents told how a caravan was brought onto the site, making it a designated campsite, with children seen staying there overnight. 

One said she felt ‘so intimidated’ by the situation she was scared to leave her home for work. 

Saeed Jamli, 42, lives in a maisonette overlooking the site and first noticed the dumpsters arriving the middle of the night. He said: ‘Now we are thinking about the rubbish and rats and mice. It’s not a good view.’

Courier Hamed Khaki Sanati, 38, added: ‘I don’t know what is going on, now it’s everywhere. It’s very ugly. It’s not summer yet and you can imagine what’s going to happen soon, just the rats.’

Some residents said they challenged the ‘cowboys’ but got abuse, while others said the dumpers posed as builders to lie about what they were doing.

Locals said the fly-tippers acted threateningly towards them and camped on the site for four days

Read more: Government accused of ‘effectively legalising’ fly-tipping after analysis shows only 1 in 500 incidents end up being prosecuted with over 1million waste dumps found last year 

One tenant in a nearby block said: ‘I saw them changing license plates and wearing balaclavas. Those guys, honest to God the rent you pay in this place to live next to that. 

‘Every time I tried to take a photo of their plates they started with threatening behaviour.’

They added they had recently had their rent put up by eight percent. 

Another described how the four days of hell began: ‘Two guys – about 35 – went up to the gate and snapped it open with bolt cutters. The police were there in five minutes but they could not do anything.

‘They said if you don’t have a video we can’t do anything. They put a caravan in and claimed it as a campsite so the police stayed off their tail.

‘There were about 70 trucks a day and that’s speaking conservatively. I once saw 20 trucks in two hours. 

‘They filled it up f**king quick. They filled up the whole space Friday, smashing the windows and taking anything they could. They take rubbish there for a discounted rate.’

His account was backed up by other residents who also saw two police cars outside the site on Saturday, April 15, once the alleged fly-tippers had left. 

One of the men reportedly returned on the same day to collect a Mitsubishi off-roader which had been left behind. Police were still in the area at the time, it is understood.  

‘It’s been stressful and concerning,’ one said. ‘I was worried about it being a campsite. 

‘When it was happening it took over my job. I work from home and every day I was phoning the police, the landlord, and security. Taking photos was like having a full-time job. I was also worried when I was leaving the house.’

The Metropolitan Police and Newlon Housing Trust have been approached for comment.

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