POLICE are appealing for witnesses after burglars smashed their way into a village store and post office while the sub-postmaster and his wife were asleep upstairs.
Up to five men are believed to have been involved in the raid at Grimsargh Village Store and Post Office during the early hours of Saturday morning, in which a large quantity of cigarettes was stolen from the Preston Road premises.
Sub-postmaster Ro
wan Harty and his wife Mary were asleep when they were woken at about 2am by the front door being smashed, which activated the business' alarm.
Mr Harty, who described the whole experience as "awful", said he then pressed their personal attack button and dialled 999, before going downstairs to find the burglars had fled.
They had jemmied open a brand new cigarette gantry installed the previous Monday to steal the packets.
This was the first time the shop and post office, which the Hartys have run for 11 years, had been targeted.
After studying CCTV, a police spokesperson said they believed four or five men were involved in the burglary and all had been wearing dark clothing and hooded tops. They had used bricks to smash the door and gain entry.
The spokesperson said: "It is believed they made off in a vehicle. We would appeal for anyone who was in the area at the time or who heard or saw anything suspicious to contact the police on 0845 1253545.''
The shop and post office has re-opened after being closed for just a few hours on Saturday morning.
