Worksop: Man slapped with £629 fine- for dropping a cigarette

Jason Mee of High Green, Sheffield, was caught by Council Environmental Health Enforcement officers dropping a cigarette butt down a grate on Bridge Street in Worksop.

Mr Mee was issued with a fixed penalty notice of £80 which he failed to pay after being given multiple opportunities to do so.

The council then instigated legal proceedings, with Mr Mee failing to attend his hearing at Mansfield Magistrates Court on January 7.

Magistrates found Mr Mee guilty and issued him with a £629 fine, including prosecution costs.

This follows a woman being fined £200 on the same day for similar offences.

Kirby Birkin of Ely Close, Worksop was caught by council officers dropping a cigarette outside the shop where she works on Bridge Street.

Ms Birkin then repeatedly failed to give her real name and address to which a fixed penalty notice was issued.

After eventually notifying the council of her real address, Ms Birkin failed to pay the fine and her case was heard by Mansfield Magistrates Court.

Ms Birkin pleaded guilty to the littering offence but failed to enter a plea for misleading the council.

The case was proved in her absence, with a total fine of £200 imposed including prosecution costs.

Councillor Julie Leigh, cabinet member for neighbourhoods at Bassetlaw Council, said: “Cigarettes are the same as any other piece of litter, making a mess of pavements and clogging up drains.

“These fines demonstrate how serious the council is about cracking down on littering and bringing offenders to justice.

“I encourage smokers to dispose of their cigarette in the public waste bins provided.”