THIEVES broke into a Co-op food store in the early hours of this morning.

Police were called to the incident at Poole Road at 3.21am.

Officers requested assistance from the NPAS helicopter crew to search for offenders.

No arrests have yet been made.

A Co-op spokesperson, said: “We can confirm that there was an incident at our Poole Road store in Upton in the early hours of this morning (18 May).

"Fortunately no one was present at the time but the store remains closed whilst we assess the damage.

"We apologise for the inconvenience caused by its temporary closure and appeal for anyone with information to come forward to the police.”

It is not yet known if anything was stolen during the break-in or if anyone was injured.

It is also not yet known what time the store will re-open.

More follows.