Jobsworth council vows not to hand out any more fines for pouring coffee down drain after quashing woman’s £150 penalty

Overzealous council officers accused of chasing after a woman who spilled the remains of her coffee down the drain have given her a £150 fine and promised “they won’t do this again”.

Burcu Yesilyurt, from Kew, west London, welcomed the common-sense decision after being left ‘shaken’ by the incident moments after spilling a small portion of her drink into a stream on the road.

Earlier today he told how he decided to throw away the drink in his reusable cup because he didn’t want to spill it on the bus.

But moments later, as she stood at a bus stop near Richmond station, she was ‘shocked’ to see three male police officers following her down the street.

Officers fined him £150 under Section 33 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and told him the fine would be reduced to £100 if he paid within 14 days.

Ms Yesilyurt said she found the encounter ‘quite frightening’ and felt shaken on the way to work.

But Richmond-upon-Thames Council insisted its officers ‘acted professionally and objectively’ and said the penalty was given in line with its policies.

He remained true to that stance but confirmed to the Daily Mail that the penalty notice would now be cancelled.

Ms Yeşilyurt previously told the BBC: ‘I noticed my bus was approaching and spilled the rest. It wasn’t much, just a little bit.

‘When I turned around I noticed three men, law enforcement, chasing me and they stopped me immediately.’

The resident claimed he was unaware that it was against the law to pour liquid down the drain on October 10.

Disposal of waste ‘in a manner that pollutes water or soil’ is an offense under Section 33 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

Spilling liquids into street drains falls within the scope of this rule.

Ms Yesilyurt said she asked the officers if there were signs informing people about the law, but the officers did not respond.

A spokesman for Richmond Council said it ‘did not agree that officers acted aggressively’ but acknowledged the fine would likely ‘be rescinded’ if it went through the appeal process.

A spokesman said in a statement: ‘We have reviewed body worn footage of the incident.

Three male bailiffs ‘chased’ Ms Yesilyurt down the street as she stood at the bus stop near Richmond station (pictured)

‘It is clear from this that a breach has occurred which justifies the issuance of a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN).

‘Contrary to the allegations in the reports, law enforcement officers acted appropriately and understandingly. They were not aggressive in any way.

‘FPNs make it clear that there is an objection process available to anyone who wishes to challenge them.

‘If this case had proceeded this way, the notification would probably have been cancelled.

‘On this occasion the Council decided to cancel the FPN.

‘We are committed to protecting Richmond’s waterways and keeping our borough’s streets clean and safe.

‘We are also reviewing our advice on the disposal of liquids in public places and will update this information on our website.’

During a visit to the area on Wednesday, the Daily Mail discovered bailiffs patrolling Richmond High Street had been ordered not to pursue anyone else for the same offence.

But an enforcement officer confirmed members of the public could still be fined for spilling their liquids on the ground.

He told the Mail: ‘This is no longer a crime. We were told not to do it again.

‘The woman complained to the council and there was no reason to do this, so they stopped it. I can’t speak for other councils but I can speak for us.

‘Last week our boss told us not to do this again.

‘It’s still a crime to spill it on the ground.’

Last year Stoke Borough Council, Jobworths, fined a couple £400 for littering after one of them placed an envelope in a public bin and was followed up with the address at the front.

Deborah and Ian Day were each fined £200 individually after finding the self-addressed envelope.

Deborah, from Bentilee, Stoke-on-Trent, put the envelope in the bin on her street as she headed to work.

But council inspectors said it breached sections 87 and 88 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and amounted to a littering offense as household waste could not be disposed of in public bins.

A spokesperson for Stoke-on-Trent City Council said at the time: ‘Stoke-on-Trent City Council maintains a zero tolerance approach to illegal dumping in our towns and with this comes enforcement. We continue proactive patrols and investigations.

‘Once an area is investigated and evidence is processed, we arrange for waste to be removed with our clean-up teams. This case is currently being investigated by our Environmental Crime Team.

‘Fixed Penalty Notices are issued as an alternative to court proceedings. ‘We are committed to working together to clean up our city and will take action against waste crimes where the evidence supports it.’