HE is Southampton’s most prolific and shameless fly-tipper who turned city streets into eyesores.

But today the law has caught up with Marcus Bairstow, after he was jailed for almost three years – the most severe prison sentence for fly-tipping Southampton has seen.

For 18 months Bairstow blighted roads and even graves with unsightly and dangerous mess, leaving the taxpayer with a clean-up bill for hundreds of pounds.

Fly-Tipping Disgrace
Rubbish dumped by a graveyard at the back of Holy Trinity church in Millbrook

Southampton City Council has revealed that since the 36-year-old, of Windermere Avenue, Millbrook, was arrested last year, large-scale fly-tipping has dropped across the city.

As reported in the Daily Echo, and among the worst cases, churchgoers branded Bairstow’s behaviour a “sacrilege” when he dumped truckloads of rubbish and rubble at the cemetery behind Holy Trinity Church in Millbrook.

The maximum sentence for fly-tipping is five years and Bairstow was not only jailed for 33 months, but also had his lorry confiscated to meet council costs.

But he did not go straight to prison. The tipper was rushed to hospital for an exploratory kidney operation.

He should already be serving 11 months behind bars for a theft offence and making off without payment but his illness has meant that he has spent all but two days of that in hospital.

At Southampton Crown Court Bairstow pleaded guilty to six charges of the unlicensed deposit of controlled waste, three of breaching a duty of care as respects to waste, and one of failing to comply with a notice to furnish information.

He also asked for 11 other offences to be considered.

Prosecutor Gary Lucie said that Bairstow began fly-tipping on May 30, 2009, in the tree-lined area of Vermont Road, Southampton, “unfortunately notorious” for the practice.

Other dumping targets included Dunkirk Avenue, Silverdale Road, Shield Industrial Estate and Somerfield in Portswood Road.

Mr Lucie said that witnesses noted the registration number of the vehicles involved and Bairstow was the registered keeper in each case. It cost more than £900 to clear the rubbish from public sites.

Mark Florida-James, defending, said that Bairstow worked for a waste disposal company until he lost his job through a bureau record check. He said: “He needed to provide for his family and it seemed an easy option. He has not made a lot of money from it.”

Passing sentence, Judge Gary Burrell QC said that commercial fly-tipping was a serious problem around the country and penalties had to be imposed.

He said: “This tipping must have been reasonably organised by you and is aggravated by the sheer number of offences and the deliberate disregard of the law for financial benefit.”

Councillor Royston Smith, leader of Southampton City Council, said that the sentence will send a clear message that the council does not tolerate fly-tipping.

He said: “I am delighted that Southampton City Council has caught the city’s biggest fly-tipper and brought him to justice.

“Mr Bairstow caused misery for residents across various parts of the city, who saw public and private land spoilt with illegally dumped rubbish.

“It took a lot of hard work to catch Mr Bairstow and an exhaustive legal process followed. But we got the right result.

“These people are not only blighting the environment but are also putting residents at risk.”