They definitely were saying that the dog's harness was removed, and I thought they said the dog was found nearby, giving the impression it had been loose. Could have been tied to the bench directly with it's collar I suppose.
Maybe you didn't realise it then. I think it was in poor taste, something you implicitly and glibly suggest of others, so maybe hypocritical then, if not deliberate irony, or you were actually being sincere, which seems incredibly unlikely.
It is strange, as a dog owner I can't envisage a scenario where I would take the harness off, unless injured. Just unclip the lead if it is OK to run around and come back, strange in my opinion and experience.