Thieves used a telehandler to steal a cash machine during an early-hours ram raid at a village Co-op store in south Warwickshire this morning.

Warwickshire Police say they first received reports of the ram raid at Fenny Compton Co-op at 2.40am this morning (Wednesday, October 4).

According to the police, the thieves used a telehandler to remove the cash machine from the shop on the village’s High Street.

The thieves then set the telehandler on fire before making off with the stolen cash machine.

Thieves set fire to the telehandler before making off with the stolen cash machine.

placeholder image — Thieves set fire to the telehandler before making off with the stolen cash machine.

A village resident said: “We were woken at around 2.30am by shouting and loud machinery. Having spotted smoke, we immediately called the emergency services.

“Shortly afterwards, we heard a car speed away down Station Road towards the Wharf pub. When we went outside, the digger was ablaze, and we witnessed two huge explosions before the emergency services arrived.

“We are all deeply shocked and saddened. This is a close-knit community and incidents like this have a huge impact on everyone. We simply cannot understand why anyone would put people, property and our community at risk in this way.”

A spokesperson for Warwickshire Police said: “An investigation has been opened, and if anyone can assist us with our enquiries, particularly if you have CCTV or doorbell camera footage, contact us citing Incident 26 of 4 November through our web reporting tool at www.warwickshire.police.uk/report or through 101

The High Street in Fenny Compton is closed to all traffic from Brook Street to Station Road at the time of writing.