JAILED SKIP HIRE BOSSES STILL OWE £69,000 COMPENSATION
THREE owners of a skip hire business, who were jailed after they were found storing far more waste than allowed in their yard, still owed more than £69,000 in compensation, a court heard last Wednesday.
Joseph Gaffey, his sister Patricia and brother Michael were ordered to pay a total of £292,000 to help pay for clearing the former Porthmadog Skip Hire site at Penamser industrial estate in April last year. Natural Resources Wales officers found huge piles of waste which posed potential risks to individuals, businesses and the environment. The cost of the clean-up, estimated at £350,000, fell on the public purse.
Joseph Gaffey was ordered to pay £92,102 within three months, Patricia Gaffey £86,729, and Michael Gaffey £113,293, with jail terms should they default. But magistrates at Caernarfon heard that, while Joseph Gaffey, 57, of Garth Terrace, Porthmadog, had paid some, there was still £44,689 outstanding.
Michael Strain, defending, said that amount was to be paid from the sale of Gaffey’s former home which he co-owned with his estranged wife. He asked for an adjournment pending the sale, which was agreed.
In a separate hearing, Patricia Gaffey, 66, of Fron, near Caernarfon, and Michael Gaffey, 62, of Maes Gerddi, Porthmadog, asked the court to write off amounts they owed. Mr Strain said they had sold their share in property and realised sums from the sale of vehicles. A value had been put on their share in the yard. “This was sold at auction and realised far less than what had been expected,” he said.
The court agreed that Patricia Gaffey, who owed £14,571, and Michael Gaffey, who has £9,945 outstanding, need not pay these amounts.