TWO men have been charged after a convenience store in Culcheth was burgled for the third time this year.

The Co-op store on Common Lane was broken at around 1.15am on Friday, November 15.

Police were called to the scene after an alarm was activated, with one man found in a car containing a large number of packets of cigarettes.

Three others fled the scene, but were located on Lowther Avenue shortly afterwards by armed officers – who were assisted by the police helicopter and a dogs unit – and arrested.

Nacai Chelmn, of no fixed address, and Marius Iancu, from Liverpool, have now been charged with burglary and remanded into custody.

The pair, both aged 20, appeared at Warrington Magistrates Court on Saturday, November 16, in order to face these charges.

Two other men, aged 42 and 23, who were arrested on suspicion of burglary in connection with the incident have since been released under investigation.

This was the third time this year that the same store has been burgled, with incident in March and June seeing criminal break in through the roof in order to cigarettes and cash from the ATM.