![The captured thief does not look like David Schwimmer from "Friends." [Image suspect courtesy Blackpool Police/Schwimmer Gordon Correll/Flickr]](https://staticr1.blastingcdn.com/media/photogallery/2019/1/22/660x290/b_502x220x82/the-captured-thief-does-not-look-like-david-schwimmer-from-friends-image-suspect-courtesy-blackpool-policeschwimmer-gordon-correllflickr_2188185.jpg "The captured thief does not look like David Schwimmer from \"Friends.\" [Image suspect courtesy Blackpool Police/Schwimmer Gordon Correll/Flickr]")
Twitter and other social media platforms were alive with posts and humorous comments last year, after a man, captured on CCTV footage stealing from a supermarket, appeared to look a lot like Ross from the US sitcom “Friends.” David Schwimmer even jokingly made a video, pretending to be stealing beer from a New York City supermarket, to show he was not in the UK at the time.
As reported by the Blackpool Gazette, since that time, police have captured the thief and recently released a mugshot of Abdulah Husseini, 36, the actual criminal. It turns out he looks nothing like David Schwimmer in the mugshot.
Maybe the facial hair makes the difference.
Thief who doesn’t look like Ross arrested
Husseini was arrested on Monday 21 January 2019 after failing to attend a court appearance in the Blackpool Magistrates’ Court on 18 December, where he was accused of fraud and theft, dating back to September 2018. A district judge issued a warrant for his arrest and Lancashire Police on Monday advised that the suspected criminal was taken into custody by the London Metropolitan Police on 17 January.
It hasn't been his day, his week, his month, and it's unlikely to be his year! Blackpool police have shared this image of an alleged thief (left!) who looks uncannily like David Schwimmer (right). Police said Schwimmer was out of the country at the time of the offence 🤣 pic.twitter.com/fvPgt07te2
— BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) October 24, 2018
The BBC reports that Husseini also failed to appear in court on charges of an outstanding theft and for the handling of stolen goods, so his charges are piling up.
Social media was alive last year over Schwimmer ‘lookalike’
Blackpool Police originally released a CCTV image of the thief, leaving a restaurant in that city on 20 September with a handful of beer cans. People on social media immediately commented on the likeness of the suspect to Ross Geller in the popular US sitcom “Friends.”
Officers, I swear it wasn't me.
— schwim (@DavidSchwimmer) October 24, 2018
As you can see, I was in New York.
To the hardworking Blackpool Police, good luck with the investigation.#itwasntme pic.twitter.com/EDFF9dZoYR
As noted above, David Schwimmer immediately responded on seeing the image, adding the funny footage of him carrying cans of beer in a New York supermarket.
Schwimmer tweeted the Blackpool Police, swearing it wasn’t him and saying as they could see, he was in New York at the time of the theft. Schwimmer went on to wish the police good luck with their investigation with the humorous hashtag #itwasntme.
@LancsPolice have arrested the "Friends" star lookalike over shoplifting offences after he failed to turn up in court. A CCTV pic of Abdulah Husseini caused a social media storm because of the resemblance to David Schwimmer. Husseini is charged with theft from a Blackpool shop pic.twitter.com/kGkdmQtFOX
— BBC North West (@BBCNWT) January 21, 2019
In the Blackpool Crime, the BBC reports Husseini, of Spencer Road, Slough, stands accused of stealing a phone, wallet and coat from a Blackpool restaurant.
According to a statement by Lancashire Police, the suspect has been remanded to appear at the Wimbledon Magistrate’s Court on 23 January 2019.
Schwimmer is now definitively cleared of any involvement in the crime, whether jokingly or not and at this stage does not appear to have a criminal doppelganger!
