Bentleys are warning individuals with safe deposit boxes to be aware after Police are said to be liaising with tax authorities over the multi-million pound contents of almost 7,000 safety deposit boxes seized as part of the Metropolitan force’s Operation Rize.

Since raids on three London safe depositaries in June this year, officers from Operation Rize – a major investigation into the laundering of the proceeds of crime – have searched more than 6,700 safety deposit boxes and found items inside 3,600, including guns, drugs, gold, works of art, jewellery, fraudulent passports, credit cards and cheque books and other documents used in fraud and human trafficking.

It has also been reported that police have recovered more than £53 million in used banknotes, which has been seized under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, which could ultimately lead to substantial sums being forfeited.

The Metropolitan Police says that early indications have suggested that the majority of the cash is from the proceeds of criminal activity, adding that much of the money, some of which was found stuffed into plastic carrier bags, was found without paperwork.

It is believed that the police are liaising with HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) to establish whether known assets and income have been declared for tax purposes by the holders of safety deposit boxes.

HMRC is also likely to be interested in establishing if box holders have previously been the focus of a tax investigation and, if this is the case, whether they have declared the contents for tax purposes.

Bentleys managing partner, Ray Darby said: “Anyone with tax issues associated with the contents of a safety deposit box would be wise to seek professional advice, with a view to making a voluntary disclosure to HMRC, rather than waiting for HMRC to come to them.

“HMRC can seek a financial penalty of up to 100 per cent of the tax due where a tax loss is due to fraud or negligence. However, voluntary disclosure and complete co-operation with a subsequent enquiry can lead to the matter being dealt with on a civil basis, with significantly reduced penalties, than if HMRC uses its criminal investigation powers.