They have captured the nude, the stupid and the downright bizarre.

But how many images published by Google on its Street View service have prompted the police to get involved?

That’s exactly what happened in Edinburgh, Scotland, when two pranksters staged a murder scene.

Garage boss Dan Thompson and mechanic Gary Kerr acted out the ‘killing’ after seeing a Google car – complete with its roof-mounted camera – approaching their work premises in Giles Street, Edinburgh.

The image, captured in August 2012, wasn’t published by Google until months later.

Police got involved after a web user spotted the picture and, thinking it was a real murder, reported it.

Uniformed officers turned up at the garage to investigate the ‘murder’, but left after the duo had explained the joke.

Thompson, explaining the gag, said: “I recognised the Google car coming into the street from the camera tower on the top. Giles Street is in a U-shape so we had about a minute before it would pass us. It had to go around a car park to take various shots so that gave us some time. We just thought we had to do something. This opportunity wasn’t coming around very often so Gary grabbed a pick axe handle and we ran out into the street.

“We decided really quickly what to do and I lay down while Gary stood over me with a pick axe handle. I wish we’d a little more time because we would have went out mob-handed and really staged an elaborate tableau for the camera.”

Picture credit: Google Maps