IT was a curious case for Miss Marple – ‘The Mystery of the Vintage MG’.

Lower Withington residents were left baffled when a 1975 MG MGB turned up on a grass verge on Farm Lane.

The car, which was in good condition, was abandoned by its owner at the beginning of December and evoked a lot of curiosity in the village.

Jackie Tuck, who came across the car whilst walking her dog, said: “It wasn’t causing an obstruction; it was more about the mystery surrounding it.

“All of the residents of a certain age will remember MGs. It’s such a lovely car and we can’t imagine why somebody would just abandon it - it was obviously loved by the previous owner.”

Jackie, along with several other residents, reported the car to the police but they were told that the vehicle hadn’t been reported as stolen and that the owner would be contacted.

Despite this, the car remained on the verge until mid-January. After issuing a 24-hour notice for its immediate removal, Cheshire East Council seized the car on January 15 and the vehicle is now in its possession.

A spokesperson for Cheshire East Council said: “We’ve been investigating this vehicle for a number of weeks. As a result of our initial inquiries, we were unable to establish ownership. This resulted in the car being removed and put in our safe storage facility.

“Our community wardens got in touch with Cheshire Police, who have kindly assisted with establishing the ownership of the vehicle. We are just waiting for the owner of the MG to contact us following a letter from the Council.”