Persons unknown who pilfered a seat from a bus stop on Lighthouse Hill got a stern rebuke from one senior East Ender: don’t mess with St David’s.

“What the devil happened to the bench?” Goldie Pitcher, 68, said in reference to her customary resting spot that mysteriously vanished from the stop next to St David’s Lighthouse.

The theft caused a stir among St David’s islanders — not least the travellers who have been inconvenienced over the past week since it was reported missing to The Royal Gazette.

A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Public Works confirmed that the bench had been taken, adding in a statement last Thursday: “We are aware and are in the process of replacing it, which may take several weeks.”

After receiving phone calls about the missing bench, two reporters from this newspaper visited the area to try to find out what had happened to it on Friday. It was finally located in a crafted hangout spot — with a clear view, cool breeze and isolation — some 50ft from the bus stop. But while some may be enjoying the comfort of the new location, it has left those waiting at the bus stop with no option other than to sit on a wall.

Reacting, one local resident said: “These young lot probably took it. Teenagers.”

And Ms Pitcher added: “Put this in the newspaper. We found the bench; you boys that live in St David’s put the bench back in the bus stop, because Goldie said so.”