The one where the case is closed!
British police have identified the alleged theft suspect who fans of the NBC sitcom Friends have noted looks strikingly similar to David Schwimmer’s character Ross.
“Could we BE any more overwhelmed with the response to our CCTV appeal about a theft at a restaurant in Blackpool? Most importantly, we’re now satisfied we’ve identified the man in the still & our enquiries are very much continuing. Huge thanks for sharing it with your friends,” Lancs Police wrote on Twitter Thursday.
The case drew national attention on Wednesday after Blackpool police shared a photo of the suspect on a security camera writing, “Do you recognise this man? We want to speak to him in relation to a theft at a Blackpool restaurant on the 20th September.”
Moments later, the post went viral with fans tweeting numerous references from Friends, which ran from 1994 to 2004.
Among the subjects were its well-known theme song — “It’s not been his day, his month or even his year,” one user wrote —to esoteric one-liners.
There were many jokes about the now 51-year-old actor’s character of Ross, a cerebral paleontologist, including that he was “on a break” — a nod to Ross’ on-again, off-again relationship with Rachel Green, played by Jennifer Aniston.
Police from the Scottish city of Dumfries jumped in on the fun, calling back to one episode where Ross claims to be an expert in self-defense. Sharing the Blackpool post, they wrote, “And if you see him keep away, he is known to have studied Karate and we believe he has mastered the art of Unagi, the state of total awareness.”
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Perhaps the most notable moment of the case was Schwimmer’s involvement.
In a hilarious attempt to clear his name, the actor shared a video of himself moving swiftly through a convenience store with cans much like the suspect photo circulated by police.
“Officers, I swear it wasn’t me. As you can see, I was in New York,” he wrote. “To the hardworking Blackpool Police, good luck with the investigation. #itwasntme”
Fortunately for Schwimmer, he was already ruled out as a suspect the previous day.
“Thank you to everyone for your speedy responses. We have investigated this matter thoroughly and have confirmed that David Schwimmer was in America on this date,” Blackpool police wrote. “We’re so sorry it has to be this way.”
At this time it is not clear if the person in question has been arrested and his identity has not been released to the public.
