Director jailed for illegal chemical sales
A Warwickshire company director has been jailed for 10 months for selling products online that contained illegal chemicals.
Nick Corbett, managing director of Abel (UK), was prosecuted after his company ignored enforcement notices ordering it to stop the sales.
The original complaint, in 2014, was about sales of a plant protection product that contained sodium chlorate.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) also found the company was selling paint stripper containing dichloromethane, and was failing to make checks on the buyers, which was a condition of sale.
HSE inspector Sarah Dutton said: “Chemicals are carefully regulated to protect human health and the environment. Sodium chlorate is not approved for use in weed killers, as a safe level of use was not established for operators.
“Dichloromethane (DCM) has been restricted in paint strippers due to concerns for human health during its use – it has caused fatalities when not used properly.”
Corbett, of Weddington Road, Nuneaton, pleaded guilty to breaching regulations 9 and 18 of The Plant Protection Products Regulations 2011 and regulation 10 of The REACH Enforcement Regulations 2008, and was given a 10-month custodial sentence at Warwick Crown Court.
