Thieves smashed their way into a village shop and garage before stealing cigarettes from behind the counter.

Boughton Post Office in The Street, based at the Oak Motors garage, was forced to close after it was targeted in an early-morning raid.

One man has since been charged in connection with the alleged incident shortly before 5am on Wednesday.

Shop assistant Briony Lane, 29, says three men pulled up onto the forecourt in a car and broke their way into the store.

“Two of them went into our shop, broke open the cigarette cabinet and stole tobacco,” she said.

“They then left in the car and didn’t touch anything else.”

Glass was strewn across the store, which meant the post office and shop was unable to open for the day, Ms Lane added.

She said: “We had to take everything off the shelves and hoover countless amount of times.

“We’re a small community here and it is for many people the only post office they have.

“They rely on us for a lot of things but we could not open the post office or shop on Wednesday so it impacted us a lot.”

She says the store was also targeted about four years ago when cigarettes were stolen.

“It makes us on edge about working here as we feel you are judging people now as they are walking in,” she said.

A police spokesman confirmed officers were called to the shop in The Street on Wednesday.

“It was reported a quantity of cigarettes stolen had been stolen before the offenders fled the scene in a vehicle,” he said.

“Inquiries were completed by officers from the Kent Crime Squad, including the examination of CCTV footage in the area, and later the same day a man was arrested.”

Matthew Robinson, of Mount Field, Faversham is accused of being involved in the incident after he was charged with burglary taking a vehicle without consent.

The 43-year-old was due to appear at Medway Magistrates’ Court today.