The 33-year-old committed the offence back in November 2017 when he put a bag of rubbish out on the street on the wrong day and also failed to attach a municipal tax sticker to the bag.

These tax stickers are one of the ways local authorities around Switzerland have of charging residents for garbage disposal.

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But the man in Biel/Bienne did not count on being found out by the two rubbish detectives who regularly patrol the city, according to Swiss news site 20 Minuten.

They were able to identify the culprit and he was fined 150 Swiss francs (€130). However, the fine was never paid and state prosecutors have now ruled he must spend two days in prison for failing to pay the fine.

It is unclear whether he will actually do the time, however, as his whereabouts are currently unknown.

Authorities in the city said 209 people in the city were slapped with rubbish fines last year, with another 600 people receiving warnings.

The city is also ready to fend off excuses about rubbish infractions.

“There are always rubbish delinquents who say someone else stuck something in their garbage bag, which is why we always look right in the middle of the bag,” a city spokesperson told 20 Minuten.

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