A former bus driver shouted at a judge while being sentenced for heavy flytipping off the M4. Despite avoiding jail Steven Brewis stormed out of Cardiff Magistrates' Court while his partner complained the hearing was a "joke".
Brewis, who lives in St Mellons, admitted two counts of unauthorised tipping in a field near Cardiff West services at Junction 33 of the M4. The dad-of-eight dumped furniture, chicken shop rubbish, garden waste, tyres and building materials which cost the landowner Persimmon £20,000 to remove.
The 36-year-old burst out in anger several times during Wednesday's hearing. He was due to be sentenced at 10am but delays in the case meant he had to wait until 4pm to enter the dock. He complained to District Judge Steve Harmes that he had been waiting "all day" and threatened he would not come back if the case was pushed to a later date.
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The judge replied: "Don't talk over me. I'm telling you now Mr Brewis — listen to me — you will come back, because if you don't there will be a warrant for your arrest."
The case was delayed by questions over the defendant's finances, but Judge Harmes was eventually able to pass sentence late in the afternoon. The judge noted that Brewis had received benefits while making money from flytipping with his "S&L Removals" business. "These records show you've had an income for the last three years while claiming benefits," he said.
The judge added: "Perhaps I was rash when I said I won't send him to prison. But I won't."
Brewis has previous jail terms for burglaries, including stealing almost £4,000 worth of power drills from B&Q in 2017 when he was a railway worker. He flytipped next to the M4 in November and December of 2020, landing in court after Cardiff Council traced him through his chicken shop client.
Neil Evans, mitigating, said: "Mr Brewis was a driver. Physical health and other reasons forced him to give up that employment. That is an industry he is actively looking to return to in the next six to nine months. Because he will be working full-time, he will not have the capacity to continue with offences such as those he falls to be sentenced for."
The judge considered a driving ban but deemed this would be "disproportionate" if it prevented Brewis from working. He added: "I'm better off and society is better off if he is working instead of on the dole."
Mr Evans said his client expects to earn £3,500 a month when he starts working again. The judge replied that he would be "kind" and sentence on the basis of Brewis earning £750 a week. Asked about the Ford van he had used for flytipping, Brewis said he had sold it for £2,450 to "someone in Grangetown".
When the judge said Brewis must pay £13,765 at a rate of £500 a month, the defendant yelled: "Sir I can't pay that." His partner, who sat in the public gallery, added: "He gets £450 a month."
Judge Harmes pointed to the information he had just heard from Brewis' lawyer, but the defendant replied: "Yeah but I can't go back to work for nine weeks because of my medication... It's nothing to do with my legs or movement sir. It's to do with my mental health. That's the reason I had to come off the buses."
His partner broke in: "It's not affordable at all. We've got eight kids at home." But the judge told her: "I don't want to hear any more from you." He then said he would have no objection to Brewis paying £250 a month for the first six months.
Judge Harmes told Brewis: "I'm not here to kill you." The defendant said "it feels like it sir", to which the judge replied: "If you want to go to custody just say the word."
Brewis suggested that custody would be "easier". But Judge Harmes said: "You'd still have to pay this though."
The defendant hit back: "Am I laughing at you? No? Well then don't laugh at me then."
The judge, who had not been laughing, responded: "Mr Brewis, who do you think you are? You are a convicted criminal. You are flytipping around Cardiff for money. And you are sitting there with bravado like you have done nothing wrong."
Brewis accused the judge of "making it sound more than I done sir". Judge Harmes replied: "The sentencing guidelines are that you should go to custody. You look at me now and say, 'Thanks judge for not taking my driving licence away from me.'"
The defendant repeated the words as requested and the hearing ended. He marched out of the courtroom flanked by his partner, who aimed the word "joke" in the direction of the sighing judge.
Judge Harmes said: "I find it difficult to understand his anger. He's committed an offence everyone can see is appalling."
In November 2020 a Welsh Water worker witnessed rubbish being dumped on the field — land which Persimmon plans to use for development. CCTV footage showed the registration number for the vehicle used in the flytipping.
The council visited the site the following month and found more rubbish had been left including building materials, flyers and packaging from Roosters chicken shop in West Bute Street. The shop said it had used a builder who had in turn paid Brewis £180 to "safely and legally remove and dispose of the waste".
The clean-up cost Persimmon £20,000 and the investigation cost the council £1,125. Judge Harmes ordered Brewis to pay a £6,075 fine, prosecution costs of £7,500 and a victim services surcharge of £190. You can read more court stories here.
A spokesperson for Cardiff Council said: "We hope that this sentence sends a clear message to those that flytip waste in Cardiff, that our waste enforcement team does follow up on all intelligence that we receive and we do take appropriate action. Although a custodial sentence wasn’t given in this case, the court has ordered Mr Brewis to pay just under £14,000. Hopefully this will make him think twice about offending again."
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