Police have launched an investigation after a hoard of cash transit boxes were discovered dumped in several of the borough’s parks.

The containers, used by security workers to transfer money from businesses to banks, were found bashed in and burnt by parks police officers last week.

The boxes, which have been linked to robberies throughout Redbridge, are just the latest in a series of criminal debris left in the borough’s green spaces this year.

Parks police officers have found everything from drug paraphernalia, fake number plates and even motorbikes abandoned discretely in parks across the borough.

Recently a large collection of fake DVDs, some of an adult nature, were discovered outside Onslow Gardens in South Woodford.

PC Iqbal Sheryor, who discovered some of the boxes, said: "We often find things left by people in the parks, but we were particularly concerned when we found these boxes.

"They are big, thick, heavy boxes and were broken into by people who obviously knew what they were doing.

"We are worried about this, both because of their possible link to crime, and also because we do not want criminals, or anyone else to think they can just dump waste in our green spaces.

"Each box is able to carry around £20,000 to £25,000 or so, so this is serious stuff."

Fellow officer Bob Butcher added: “Criminal dumping like this did used to be quite prevalent but since the parks police were set-up there has been a huge decrease in this type of crime.

“We have been quite a deterrent and people are thinking twice about doing it.

"Of course it is still going on but it’s nowhere near as bad as it used to be.

“People dumping motorbikes can be a problem. You get kids stealing pizza delivery bikes because they’re so easy to drive. They joy ride on them until the police turn up and then they just dump them.”

Two of the boxes were found last Tuesday (December 4) Westwood Recreation Ground in Ilford, while another four were found dumped in a pond in Barking Park the day after.