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More on KentOnline
Thieves used a digger to smash into a shop and steal a large amount of money from a cash machine.
The Co-op in Cranbrook, off the High Street, has been left badly damaged by the raid in which a JCB was used to plough into the building.
KMTV report from the scene of the ram raid
It happened at around 2am and police say they are hunting three suspects.
The digger remains outside the building and officers recovered a car abandoned in a nearby road, which is thought to have been involved in the burglary.
Officers are also looking for a third vehicle they believe may have been used in the crime.
Det Sgt Jason Booth said: "We remain in the area carrying out enquiries and reviewing CCTV and forensic opportunities.
"We would ask any witnesses who have not yet been in contact to call us as soon as possible."
A Co-op spokesman said the store will closed while forensic investigations take place and bosses are awaiting the results of structural assessments.
“We appeal for anyone who may have seen or heard anything to come forward to police, who are investigating," he said.
"This week is Respect for Shopworkers Week and, as a community-based organisation, we see the impact of social issues in our stores - this incident further highlights the need for greater resources to tackle the root causes of crime in our communities."
It reopened the following morning.
Witnesses claim the attack took five minutes after the thieves took a digger from a nearby building site.
Villagers were shocked to hear the digger tore apart the shop front and said they didn't hear anything.
Maureen and Francis Briley have lived on High Street for 60 years and their home backs on to the site of the raid.
They said: “It’s a surprise. Nothing like this has happened before and we rarely see the police round here.
“Where did they get that machine from? Somebody must have seen them, but there’s no CCTV around the outside of the shop.”
Jo Pearce, also of High Street, is a director of Angelfish Travel at Cranbrook Business Centre.
She said: “I’m shocked that someone could get that thing all the way up the high street without somebody noticing because it’s such a residential high street.
Another neighbour said she often hears activity in the car park overnight, but this morning she heard nothing.
Cllr Tom Dawlings represents Benenden and Cranbrook: "This is a mess, I'd heard the ATM had been broken into what I didn't expect to see was half of the frontage had been taken away.
"The nearest supermarket is Hawkhurst, this is a thorough inconvenience to people living locally.
"I've never seen anything done on this sort of scale. It's quite horrific. The digger has obviously come from a fairly local building site and its not what you expect to see in a car park with that sort of mess behind it."
It is the second time a Co-Op in Kent has been ramraided in the last week.
On Friday a store near Wye, Ashford, was smashed into by a 4x4 and the thieves got away with a cash box filled with money.
A spokesman from Cardtronics, the company that own the cash machine, said: "Our machines are all clearly marked as ‘Secure ATMs’ and possess a range of anti-attack technology and forensic tracing capabilities that help to prevent successful attacks, and make identifying and convicting criminals much each easier.
KMTV report on police crackdown after spate of ram raids
"We have already helped law enforcement officers catch and convict over 200 criminals this year. So, whoever attacked this machine should know that chances are very high they will be caught and convicted.”
There have been 13 ram raids across Kent this year.
In total, seven of the attacks have been at Co-op stores.
Anyone with information or dashcam footage from the area between 1.30am and 2.30am should call 01622 604100, quoting reference 14-0072, or the anonymous Crimestoppers hotline on 0800 555111.
