An English tutor has been handed a £150 fine after tossing sandwich crusts to peckish pigeons during her lunch break.
Holly Piper, a 36-year-old from Ealing, west London, was issued a littering ticket by two council enforcement officers who approached her while she watched the birds eat.
Her subsequent appeal against the penalty was unsuccessful.
Describing the moment she saw officers approaching, she told The Sun: "I gave the pigeons the crust of my tuna sandwich and, out of the corner of my eye, I saw some blokes coming towards me."
She explained her initial reaction was to flee, having previously been the victim of phone theft in London.
"Then I saw their black uniforms," she said.
"It was horribly confusing because I didn't think I'd done anything wrong."
She noted the birds had already scoffed the crusts by the time council officers confronted her.
Holly Piper was issued a littering ticket by two enforcement officers from Ealing Council
|GETTY
"I feel like I've been going mad and doubting myself, asking if it really is illegal to feed the birds," the 36-year-old added.
Ealing Council has defended its enforcement policy.
The local authority insisted it takes "a zero-tolerance approach" to littering.
Officials explained that leaving food for pigeons can draw rats and other vermin to the area.
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Ealing Council was accused of showing a 'complete lack of common sense' in pursuing the case | GETTYCouncils up and down Britain have been caught handing out littering fines under dubious circumstances.
In Skegness, an 86-year-old pensioner was slapped with a £250 fine after spitting out a leaf that had blown into his mouth.
Roy Marsh was resting in the South Parade car park in Skegness back last when the incident occurred during what he described as windy conditions.
The elderly man successfully challenged the penalty on appeal, though the local authority still required him to pay £150, which he subsequently did.
"It was something that could have happened to anyone," Mr Marsh said.
"As I was sitting there, a gale blew a big reed into my mouth. I spat it out and just as I got up to walk away two guys came up to me," he said.
The enforcement officers informed the pensioner he had been observed spitting on the ground and the 86-year-old claimed he responded by telling one officer he was being a "silly boy".
"It was all unnecessary and all out of proportion," Mr Marsh added.
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