A woman fly-tipped all the furniture from a bedroom in her home to try and beat bed bugs, York Magistrates Court heard.

Ben Thomas, prosecuting, said the bed, set of drawers and other items were found in an isolated lane in the middle of the North Yorkshire countryside.

Officers from Selby District Council searched the items and found correspondence from Marinela Memet.

Memet’s lawyer Graham Parkin said she had cleared out the bedroom and deep cleaned it after she realised it contained bed bugs.

She panicked when considering where to put the furniture and that led to the fly-tipping.

“She knew she shouldn’t have done it,” he said.

Memet, 34, of Clog Mill Gardens, Selby, pleaded guilty to fly-tipping after the council prosecuted her.

York magistrates told her fly tipping cost the council an “extremely large amount of money every year”.

She was ordered to pay a total of £530, consisting of a £246 fine, a £34 statutory surcharge and £250 prosecution costs.

The council’s lead executive member for health and culture, Cllr Tim Grogan, said. “Dumping your rubbish isn’t tolerated in our district. Another successful prosecution by the Council sends out a clear message that where possible we will take action and seek to prosecute fly tippers.

“Illegal dumping of waste is a blight on the community and a crime, and has a financial impact on the council and therefore the local taxpayer.

“Our enforcement team’s hard work has led us to this successful prosecution. As a council, we are dedicated to keeping our district clean and safe for everyone.”

Mr Thomas, on behalf of the council, told the court it had spent £746.36 on dealing with the fly-tipping, including the prosecution.

it was notified on May 5 about the fly tip, which was on Second Common Lane, two and a half miles north west of Selby by Selby Common.

Once they had identified Memet as a suspect, the council had difficulty contacting her.

After officers succeeded in reaching her, she admitted responsibility for the dump and said sorry.

The council offered her the chance of avoiding prosecution by paying a £400 fixed penalty notice with a £100 discount if she paid it within 28 days.

But she didn’t pay.

Mr Parkin said Memet had wanted to pay the fixed penalty notice.