TWO men have been ordered to pay thousands of pounds for dumping asbestos in part of Thurrock.

David Tuffen and Nigel Hickman were part of an illegal asbestos dumping scam, leaving the deadly material in car parks.

Waste was dumped at a car park at the Glade Business Centre, in Eastern Avenue, Grays, Clipper Park, Tilbury, Jodrell Way, Dolphin Quarry, London Road, and near the Argos store at Lakeside.

Asbestos was also left at the highways depot off the A13 at Stanford-le-Hope and in Swanscombe, Kent.

An Environment Agency investigation traced the asbestos back to a firm run by Hickman and Tuffen in Benfleet. The firm did not have a permit for asbestos.

At a court hearing in February, Tuffen was jailed for two years, suspended for two years, while Hickman was jailed for 18 months, suspended for two years.

Ruffen and Hickman were back at Chelmsford Crown Court for a confiscation hearing.

Tuffen was said to have earned £669,050 from the enterprise and Hickman £115,232, the court heard. Both men also agreed to pay £13,841 compensation to pay for cleaning up the mess.