David Schwimmer Look-A-Like Thief Has Been Caught

David Schwimmer American Crime Story: The People vs. OJ Simpson

If you happen to have seen a thief that looks an awful lot like Ross from Friends, you shouldn't fret. That is (probably) not actor David Schwimmer. Rather, it's an impressive look-a-like. And the British criminal is reportedly behind bars at the moment after attracting no shortage of attention online.

According to NBC News and its London division, the Lancashire Police have caught the 36-year-old criminal with a striking similarity in his appearance to none other than David Schwimmer, the actor/director best known for his work on the long-running NBC sitcom, Friends. The man has been taken into custody based on the suspicion of theft. On social media, the police claimed that the Internet's interest in the case helped them find the culprit.

Thank you for the support, especially David Schwimmer!

Meanwhile, David Schwimmer was located several hundred miles away from the crime, but thanks to the Internet, he was able to have some fun with his nefarious doppelganger. On Twitter, he made light of the situation by telling everyone that he was not the person behind the crime. He swears on it! (Also, funny enough, this social media post referencing this criminal was the one-and-only time the actor tweeted on his professional Twitter account.)

Officers, I swear it wasn't me. As you can see, I was in New York. To the hardworking Blackpool Police, good luck with the investigation. #itwasntme

In the surveillance footage that went viral last month once the criminal's similar appearance to David Schwimmer was apparent, it showed the unknown man scuffling into a convenience store and shoplifting a carton of beer cans. He looked at the security camera long enough to have everyone get a good look at the man who looks quite a bit like David Schwimmer, who is known worldwide for his acting on the famous and popular comedy series.

What happens from here is left vague, but it sounds like the Internet can be helpful in very, very strange ways. And we should feel comforted to know that David Schwimmer is likely not the man who was behind this crime, as he was not in London at the time of this crime. But I suppose if Schwimmer were to get himself into any trouble these days, he could always peg it on his doppelganger. That guy has a history of criminal behavior, after all.

Of course, it seems unlikely that David Schwimmer would do such a thing. After his tenure on Friends, Schwimmer has kept himself busy as both an actor and a filmmaker in a number of different projects.

Among the most notable of his post-Friends appearances is his supporting work on American Crime Story: The People vs. OJ Simpson, where the comedic actor turned in a terrific performance as Robert Kardashian, Simpson's attorney and the late father of the Kardashians. He is currently filming a role in the new Steven Soderbergh period drama, The Laundromat, where he plays Matthew Quirk.

Will Ashton

Will is an entertainment writer based in Pittsburgh, PA. His writing can also be found in The Playlist, Cut Print Film, We Got This Covered, The Young Folks, Slate and other outlets. He also co-hosts the weekly film/TV podcast Cinemaholics with Jon Negroni and he likes to think he's a professional Garfield enthusiast.