Peter Stott, 33, from Fairfield Road, Bramley, Leeds, is charged with depositing controlled waste at the council's Merrion House building on October 5 last year.

At a hearing at Leeds Magistrates Court yesterday Mr Stott, a scrap dealer, pleaded not guilty to the charge and elected to stand trial before a jury at Leeds Crown Court.

He will appear before magistrates again on June 3rd when his trial date will be set.

Mr Stott was charged under Section 33 of the Environmental Protection Act, under laws used to prosecute flytippers.

The charge carries a maximum £50,000 fine and up to six months in jail when dealt with by magistrates.

However the punishment is more severe at Crown Court and, if found guilty, Mr Stott faces an unlimited fine and up to two years in prison.

In an unrelated matter, he is also charged with failing to produce legal documents for waste disposal when asked to do so during a routine stop and search a few weeks earlier.

Father-of-one Mr Stott appeared in the YEP in October when he protested outside Leeds City Council's Merrion House offices, demanding it rehouse his baby girl and ex-partner. Both have since moved into a new council home.