WALKING his dogs late at night in Talbot Woods, Poole, the last thing Les Powell expected to see was a woman dumping rubbish in the street.

"I turned the corner and there was a woman just throwing the last bit of cardboard out. Then she got into her car and drove off at a rate," said Mr Powell.

The outraged resident was quick-thinking enough to make a note of the number of the white 4x4 Jeep-type vehicle, driven by a woman in her 30s.

With his two border collies, who he was walking at 12.45am on Friday, in tow, Mr Powell, 63, from Wallisdown, examined what had been dumped in Talbot Drive.

He saw a pile of large empty cardboard boxes, which had contained Argos wardrobes, and a number of black bin bags, thrown down on the path and the front of derelict Edward House.

"People should not get away with deliberately going out to do that at that time of night, thinking there's no-one around," he said. "There is a school nearby and the children walk past. What impression does it give them with all the litter and the fly-tipping?

"If you can afford to have flash wardrobes and you have got a flash car, you can take it down the tip or pay someone to take it away."

Mr Powell has reported the matter, along with the registration number to the Borough of Poole and said he was prepared to give evidence in court if necessary.

The illegal dumping of rubbish is an unsightly countywide problem, for which the maximum court penalty is a £50,000 fine or five years in jail.

David Rickards, principal officer for environment and consumer protection at the Borough of Poole, said: "We encourage residents who spot someone fly-tipping to contact the council to report when and where the offence has taken place and, if possible, a description of any vehicles involved along with their registration numbers.

"The council will investigate and pursue prosecutions where there is sufficient evidence as fly-tipping is illegal, dangerous and can ruin the appearance of residents' neighbourhoods.

"Borough of Poole takes enviro-crimes seriously and has taken enforcement action on 113 occasions in the last 10 months."