THE 99p store in Folkestone was forced to shut this morning after a team of UK Border Agency workers swooped to check staff visas.

The shop was closed at just after 9.30am by six Border Agency officers who took members of staff to the back of the store to examine their visa documents.

Temporary store manager Jai Vernireddi confirmed they were forced to close for almost an hour for officials to complete their checks.

Shopper Maggie Smithard said: "The Border Agency officers asked us to put our items back on the shelves and just leave the store."

The Ashford shop was not affected, but a spokesman said the Folkestone branch "was having problems".