How CSI tactics are fighting the fly-tippers

Here is the latest breaking news from around the world: How CSI tactics are fighting the fly-tippers5 hours ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleGabby ColensoEast investigationsGabby Colenso/BBCLaura Haydon says fly-tipping is widespread across LutonYellow tape marked "Crime scene – Do not enter" seals off part of a residential street. Investigators wearing protective clothing and gloves are searching among the black bags, broken furniture and scattered waste for clues. Is this the scene of a violent crime?

"I've seen tape go across with cones, looking like someone's been murdered here," says Laura Haydon, who lives nearby. "It's not – it's just a mattress. "Gabby Colenso/BBCLuton Council is using yellow tape to seal off fly-tipping sites as part of a new strategyLast September, Luton Council began trialling a new approach to tackling fly-tipping: treating dump sites as conventional crime scenes and employing enforcement officers to search through waste for evidence – a torn delivery label, a prescription slip, an address hidden inside a cardboard box – that could identify who is responsible.

The Details

In this instance, the waste is a discarded bed frame and other furniture, dumped on a street of redbrick terraced houses off the town's Dallow Road. Nearby are bins overflowing with rubbish, and waste including sofas, toys and prams blocks the pavement. Gabby Colenso/BBCNaveed Shakoor says living with fly-tipping "drains you mentally"Dealing with fly-tipping has become a "constant battle" for Naveed Shakoor, who has lived in the neighbourhood for most of his life.

"There are syringes, dead rats and mice everywhere," he says. "It feels like leaving your back door open. You don't know what could come into your house.

"When you're trying to work hard and provide for your children, living like this completely drains you mentally. "SuppliedLocal authorities in England dealt with 1. 26 million fly-tipping incidents in 2024-25Luton, roughly 30 miles (50km) north-west of London, has the highest number of incidents of illegal dumping in the East of England.

What Experts Say

James Taylor, the council's outgoing Labour portfolio holder for regeneration and inclusive growth, says a new approach was needed. "What we were doing before, we were just picking up off the street, and people were thinking it's almost like a free service. "Some local officers said, 'We're doing the same thing over and over but we're getting the same results.

Let's try something different. '"Under the new strategy, dumped rubbish is left for three days with what the council calls "CSI tape" around it, or stickers to show it is being investigated. Black bin waste containing food is cleared away quicker.

CCTV has also been installed in hotspot areas. SuppliedResidents say they worry their children will think it is normal to live among fly-tipped wasteLuton's issue reflects a wider national trend. Local authorities in England dealt with 1.

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.