Raiders broke INTO a Lancashire prison and made off with a haul of cigarettes.

The thieves climbed over fences surrounding HMP Kirkham near Preston and entered a storage area where they stole £8,000 of tobacco.

A spokeswoman for Lancashire Constabulary said: "We can confirm that we are looking into a report of a theft of a large quantity of tobacco after an outbuilding within Kirkham prison was broken into earlier this month.

"An investigation is ongoing and officers are reviewing CCTV footage."

The burglary at the Category D jail, which houses up to 590 inmates, took place on November 5.

The former RAF training centre opened as a prison in 1962.