BURGLARS who broke into a petrol station on Christmas day caused so much damage that bosses have been unable to reopen.

On Christmas morning the alarm log showed that at around 2.15am burglars gained entry into the BP garage at Wilton roundabout, known as Bennetts' Garage.

They stole cash and cigarettes but also caused so much damage, that owner John Bennett has been unable to reopen.

Mr Bennett said: "They also damaged a lot of equipment underneath the till. First of all I had to get the phone lines reconnected which was yesterday.

"Now I have got a man on-site to deal with the tills."

Further work still needs to take place so he is unsure if they will be able to reopen tomorrow.

He added: "They have really trashed the place. It almost feels as if they are breaking into your own house. I have been here a good few years. It just doesn't feel nice."

Mr Bennett said the burglars even pushed an ice cream machine, which he had recently bought, onto the floor.

He added: "We don't know exactly when we will be open at the moment.Hopefully we will be open before the weekend."

Police said they were called at 6.28am on Boxing Day following reports of a burglary. Investigations are ongoing and so far no arrests have been made.

Call police on 101 quoting incident number 79S of 26-12-15 if you have any information regarding this incident.

Update: The garage reopened on Tuesday night (29/12/15).