A retiree visited by police for a child’s flatulence toy has branded the visit an “absolute waste” of the officer’s time.

The 75-year-old London Colney man, who would prefer to remain anonymous, was baffled when a constable knocked on his door in Birch Way at about 3pm on Sunday, July 15.

The officer was enquiring about offensive human noises coming from the house. One of his four great grandchildren had been playing with a fart machine and a neighbour had called the police.

“What an absolute waste of police time. They could be doing something better because there’s so many problems with the shortage of money in policing. They had been told that there was an insulting noise every time this woman walked past. I could understand if it came from real flatulence but it’s my little great grandson, it’s highly amusing to young children.”

The man has been involved in a long-running dispute with the neighbour.

A spokeswoman from Herts Police said they had received a complaint: “Words of advice have been given to both parties.”