Woman fined for throwing cigarette out of car window

A LLANELLI woman has been fined by magistrates after she was seen throwing a cigarette out of a car window.

Kirsty Lee Harries, aged 27, of Trinity Road, was convicted in absence to a littering offence at Carmarthen Magistrates Court.

The court heard that council environmental enforcement officers were parked in a council vehicle in Murray Street when a car pulled up and parked ahead of them.

The female driver was seen throwing her cigarette out of the window before driving off. The officers followed the vehicle until it stopped in nearby Stepney Street and then spoke to the driver, explaining what they had seen.

She was issued with a fixed penalty notice; however no payment was received despite a reminder letter being sent.

Harries was fined £100 and ordered to pay £310.25 prosecution costs and a £20 victim surcharge.

Figures show that around 83% of all litter found on the county’s streets is smoking-related.

Executive Board Member for Environmental and Public Protection Cllr Jim Jones said: “Dropping litter is against the law and dropping a cigarette end is no different from throwing any other sort of litter.

“They make an area look untidy and they are difficult and costly to clean up as they fall into grates and cracks in the pavement making them almost impossible to remove by normal cleaning methods.”