Two men have pleaded guilty to a ram-raid burglary at a village Co-op store which caused extensive damage.

Bradley Pearce, 39, and Jamie Turner, 38, both of no fixed address, appeared before magistrates after a major police search took place when the front of the shop on the Isle of Grain was smashed in to.

They were remanded in custody and attended Medway Magistrates' Court yesterday where they admitted the burglary charge.

Police located two suspects after deploying a dog unit and police helicopter to help in the search effort.

The men were arrested after they were found hiding in woodland near the Four Elms roundabout in Chattenden.

The shop, which is in Grain High Street, was targeted at around 3am on Monday and police attended when the alarm was triggered.

Officers attending spotted a BMW nearby which raised suspicion and they followed the vehicle from the scene.

Several emergency teams were seen combing the wooded area at about 4am and a BMW X5 patrol car suffered damage to its front bumper.

Later on, experts were on site at the store assessing whether there had been any structural damage caused by the raid.

It was initially feared the shop could be closed for days or weeks with staff facing uncertainty about their working hours.

But a spokesman for the Co-op said repairs had progressed well and the shop was ready to reopen at 6am today.

Cigarettes, alcohol, razor blades and football trading cards were reported stolen from the shelves which led to “a significant amount of damage”.

Police spokesman Sally Smith said: “Whilst attending the call a patrol noted a suspicious vehicle and signalled for it to stop.

“Following a pursuit, and assistance from the police helicopter, the patrols began to search a woodland area.

“A police dog unit and local officers then located two men who were arrested in connection with the incident.”

Residents said police had been knocking on doors in the village in the early hours and officers were stationed outside the shop throughout Monday.

Villagers were left in shock and angered by the incident.

Initially, the Co-op said it had hoped to reopen on Monday evening following a clean-up operation throughout the day but this had to be pushed back to allow for further repairs.

Pearce was also charged with a second count of burglary, in connection to theft of bridal accessories from a shop in Rochester High Street at 12.15am on June 17. He also pleaded guilty to this charge.

Pearce and Turner have been remanded in custody to appear at Maidstone Crown Court on a date to be determined for sentencing.

For information on how we can report on court proceedings, click here.

To read more of our in depth coverage of all of the major trials coming out of crown and magistrates' courts across the county, click here.