THE council has identified the culprits who fly-tipped huge amounts of rubbish in front of a revered church and will seek prosecutions, it has been claimed.

Residents were brought to tears when 30-40 tonnes of household waste was dumped on public land off West Mayne in Laindon on Wednesday night.

John Baron, MP for Basildon and Billericay joined residents’ calls for Basildon Council and Essex Police to find and prosecute those responsible.

Council workers and a specialist private firm started the clear-up on Friday, which will cost taxpayers up to £7,000.

The rubbish was left when travellers, who were on the green belt site near the 13th Century church for less than a week, were evicted by Basildon Council on Wednesday.

The encampment of 25 caravans - which moved just a mile away to a patch of grass off West Mayne - have been served another eviction notice.

Andrew Barnes, Tory councillor for Laindon Park, said the authorities know who the offenders are and hope for prosecutions.

He said: “We are aware of who these people are, we need now to pursue a prosecution against the people who carried out the fly-tip and the people whose rubbish was found at the site.”

Businesses and individuals can be hit with hefty fines if their belongings are discovered among fly-tipped waste.

In a public statement Mr Baron called on travellers to “respect the law” and called on the authorities to bring the perpetrators to justice.

He said: “It is unacceptable that this site has been left in such a state.

“I am clear that travellers must respect the law in the same way that the settled community do.

“I am therefore urging Essex Police and other agencies to do what they can to compile enough evidence to prosecute those responsible.”

He urged residents and businesses to check rubbish removal companies have the correct licences before hiring them because “if the price seems too good to be true, it probably is.”

A spokesman for Essex County Council said: “The police issued the encampment at St Nicholas Lane with a ‘Section 61 order’ on Wednesday.

“The encampment has since arrived at West Mayne, Basildon.

“The Essex Countywide Traveller Unit will serve them with a Direction to Leave notice on Friday, April 28, and expect them to move on in the coming days.”