$3,000 of cigarettes stolen from Cocke County convenience store through hole in the wall

by: WATE 6 Staff

Posted: Dec 30, 2019 / 11:56 AM EST / Updated: Dec 30, 2019 / 11:56 AM EST

FILE – This Aug. 28, 2017 file photo shows cigarettes displayed on a store shelf in New York. With a new law enacted in December 2019, anyone under 21 can no longer legally buy cigarettes, cigars or any other tobacco products in the U.S. It also applies to electronic cigarettes and vaping products that heat a liquid containing nicotine. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

NEWPORT, Tenn. (WATE) – Cocke County Sheriff’s deputies are investigating after 60 cartons of cigarettes were stolen from a Newport convenience store.

The Cocke County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a burglary after 60 cartons of cigarettes were stolen from a convenience store on Highway 160 in Newport.

A store clerk reported she arrived to open the store on Monday to find a large hole smashed through the rear wall of the building. The hole was large enough for the burglar to reach through and access cartons of cigarettes stored inside the business.

A total of 60 cartons of cigarettes, valued at $3,000, were taken. In addition to wall damage estimated at $1,000.

Interior security footage was recorded at 4:30 a.m. Monday. This is a developing story and we’ll continue to update the details as they become available.