THIEVES have been condemned for stripping Otley of its heritage - just feet away from the town's police station.

A large section of Yorkshire coping stone was ripped from the boundary wall of Manor Garth Park, Bridge Street on Friday night.

And despite the wall being clearly visible from Otley Police Station and right on a main road, the thieves got clean away.

Leeds City Council, which owns the wall, has condemned the thieves and has promised to repair the wall as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, Otley councillors have asked how the theft happened so close to the police station.

Councillor Gerard Francis (Con, Otley and Wharfedale) said: "I think the word gets around that the police are not very active in the town and that it's an easy target. It's very blatant.

"I can't believe no one heard anything, the amount of noise it created, someone must have heard something."

Town councillor John Eveleigh said: "People need to be shopping these people - somebody must have seen it."

A spokeswoman for Leeds City Council said: "In this case we are currently rebuilding the wall to ensure the appearance of the area is not affected in the long term.

"We would urge anyone with information about a suspected theft of York stone to contact the police.

"This is an important part of our Yorkshire heritage which we would like to conserve for future generations."

A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police said the theft of stone in Otley had been a problem for some time.

"We would appeal to members of the community to remain vigilant and contact the police immediately if they see anything suspicious."

He said thieves could give the impression they were legitimate workers, but that people could help by noting down the registration number of vehicles used by the workmen.