Serial Fly-Tipper Jailed After Dumping Waste Across South East Cornwall

A man who illegally dumped rubbish at multiple locations across South East Cornwall has been sentenced to prison following a series of fly-tipping offences.

On 14 January 2026, Kirk Robert Bignell, 50, of Lanreath near Looe, appeared at Truro Crown Court after admitting seven offences of depositing controlled waste on land without consent, contrary to the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

The court heard that Bignell advertised waste removal services on social media under the names “KB Van and Man” and “Scrap Beez”, despite not holding a valid waste carrier’s licence. He was paid by householders and businesses to dispose of rubbish but instead dumped the waste at various locations across East Cornwall.

Items fly-tipped included commercial fridges, furniture, building materials and household waste. Investigations by Cornwall Council’s Community Protection team linked the dumped material back to Bignell.

After initially being charged with six offences, Bignell was caught fly-tipping again and subsequently faced a seventh charge. The offences were committed between July 2023 and July 2024. The court was also told that Bignell was already subject to a suspended sentence for benefit fraud at the time.

Sentencing Bignell, Judge Simon Carr imposed a 12-month custodial sentence for the waste offences and activated the previous suspended sentence, resulting in an additional two months in prison.

Councillor Thalia Marrington, Cabinet member for Community Safety and Public Protection at Cornwall Council, said fly-tipping would not be tolerated.

She said:

“Fly-tipping puts people and wildlife at risk and costs a significant amount of money to clear up, with the burden falling on taxpayers and private landowners.

“Kirk Bignell did not have a licence to remove waste and showed a total disregard for the law by continuing to dump rubbish even after being charged. He falsely claimed to be a legitimate waste carrier, misleading residents and businesses into paying for services that were never properly delivered.”

She added that residents and businesses have a responsibility to ensure they use licensed operators when arranging waste removal.

People can check whether a business or individual is authorised to carry waste via the Environment Agency’s public register.