Fears that a fisherman had been attacked and dumped in the River Thames over the weekend turned out to be just a man washing his clothes in the river.

In a classic case of Chinese whispers, several members of a Kingston boating community rang the Surrey Comet and reported that an elderly man had been assaulted near Raven's Ait on Friday night and was then pushed into the river.

Eye-witnesses described dramatic scenes of police divers, unmarked police cars and men in white suits scouring the scene.

One man, who did not want to be named, said: "We saw Raven's Ait all cordoned off and police divers down there.

"There was a lot of activity and the sirens were blaring. We didn't have a clue what was going on."

Another man who heard the rumours said: "We heard that there was a fisherman that had been attacked and police had quarantined a car park near Hart's Boatyard to look for fingerprints."

The search for clues to the mysterious incident included a ring-round of riverside pubs and restaurants, the RNLI, ambulance records and a call to Raven's Ait, which denied any knowledge of the incident.

Kingston police eventually confirmed that they were called to Raven's Ait at 4.52am on Saturday morning.

A spokeswoman said a fisherman saw a man take off all his clothes, wash himself in the Thames and then drive away in a vehicle.

Officers attended the scene but the man had already gone.

A police spokesman said: "The Marine Policing Unit were called as they would be to any incident involving people in the Thames to utilise their specialist skills for the safety of that member of public."

"No offences have been reported at this time and Kingston Police have closed the matter."

Raven's Ait decline to comment.