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16 Apr 2026

Tipping point! Karma for Longford fly-tipper caught dumping bags of rubbish

Two passers-by made the fly-tipper take back his rubbish before then escorting him to a waste facility

Tipping point! Karma for Longford fly-tipper caught dumping bags of rubbish

File photo

​A serial fly-tipper who was caught throwing bags of rubbish into the drain beside the scenic walkway from Monaduff Park to Gaigue Cross in Ballinamuck, felt the sharp sting of karma when he was not only caught red-handed and confronted but forced to take back his rubbish before being escorted to a recycling facility to dispose of it the legal way.

​Drumlish Councillor David Cassidy was one of the two passers-by involved but said the credit lay solely with the second individual who witnessed the incident first-hand and stopped to confront the fly-tipper.

Read: Longford road reopens after collision leaves three people, including a child, hospitalised

Said the councillor, “I only came upon the scene minutes after the fly-tipper was confronted. An observant passerby - who is from Moyne but lives in New York and was home visiting - saw a man fly-tipping in our lovely area so he stopped and confronted him about it. The fly-tipper had dumped bags of rubbish into the drain which is down a significant drop.”

“I know the fly-tipper in question as he has been caught dumping rubbish and confronted loads of times in the past. He’s even received convictions for it so when I was driving by and saw him standing at the side of the road, I had a fair idea of what was going on and knew he had likely been caught again. I turned the car around and went back.”

Read: Life buoys, a walking aid, and a buggy among “outrageous” rubbish found in Longford beauty spot

Cllr Cassidy added “As I got out of my car, the passer-by was just climbing out of the drain, carrying the bags of rubbish; the poor man’s runners and pants were destroyed."

"The drain is a significant drop down and due to the fly-tipper’s age, he wouldn’t have been physically able to go in or get out, so the other person went in to get the rubbish. He then made the fly-tipper put the bags of rubbish into his car and bring them to Mulleady's Waste."

Read: Longford's new Men’s Shed in Ballymahon offers men a social community as local interest surges

"Myself and the man even followed the fly-tipper to the facility in our cars to ensure the rubbish was disposed of properly and not dumped somewhere else. Some people think they can throw their rubbish wherever they want and it’s not on. I will now tolerate people destroying our beautiful area.”

If you would like to report illegal dumping, please contact Longford County Council or fill in the complaint form on their website.

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