Residents reportedly spotted a garden gnome staring fixedly across a cul-de-sac, which has led to vigorous discussion among people with too much time and a decent spreadsheet.
Experts are calling the behaviour 'deliberate' despite the gnome being, in fairness, a piece of painted resin with the emotional range of a damp biscuit.
The current theory is that the statue's unusual sideways lean indicates either hidden narrative symbolism or that someone has had a go at the paving with a shovel.
One analyst suggested the gnome may be 'guarding a route', though admitted this is the kind of thing one says when the evidence is a bit wonky and the tea is getting cold.
Fans have now begun mapping nearby wheelie bins, on the grounds that any object within 30 metres of a suspicious gnome must be part of a grander scheme.