A 58-year-old woman from Swindon, London is reportedly convinced that the Blackpool thief, who has been famously dubbed as actor David Schwimmer's lookalike, is her son who went missing nearly 11 years ago, according to reports. The picture of the Blackpool thief went viral earlier this week after the Blackpool police posted an appeal on Facebook to identify the suspect, showing him leaving a restaurant carrying a crate of cans.
The police department's post read: "Do you recognize this man? We want to speak to him in relation to a theft at a Blackpool restaurant on the 20th September." Soon after the post was made public, many Facebook users were quick to point out that the suspect looked like the "spitting image" of Schwimmer's character in the American sitcom. There were many who made Friends-related puns in the comments section and shared Ross Geller quotes as well.
Although the picture of the suspect became a source of amusement for many on social media, including actor David Schwimmer, a woman from Swindon, Susan Trowbridge, seems "100 percent convinced" that it is the first picture of her son she has son ever since he went missing over a decade ago. Trowbridge said that she was shocked when she saw the picture on the internet and instantly realized that the thief bore a striking resemblance to her son Paul. She said her son, whom she had adopted, had schizophrenia and went missing without a trace 1 July, 2007. She added that even when he was a teenager, he resembled Ross from Friends.
Trowbridge, while talking to The Sun Online, said: "Someone sent the appeal to my daughter saying he looked like Paul and she showed it to me. I'm his mum - call it mother's instinct or whatever you want but I'm 100 per cent convinced it's him. It's his eyes and the way his hair falls, I can just tell. It's the first picture of him I've seen in 11 years and it's amazing."
Trowbridge said that the last time she saw her son, she waved him off at the airport before a holiday trip to Barbados. He reportedly went missing two weeks later. The 58-year-old has reportedly contacted the Blackpool Police about it, however, the officials told her that the suspect is not Paul. "I emailed police and told them I was his mum but they came back and said the man in the CCTV isn't Paul. I just don't know how they can be so sure - they haven't arrested anyone or named a suspect so they can't know for definite," Trowbridge said.
Blackpool Police, on Thursday, had issued a statement on Twitter — with a Friends reference — thanking the public for their assistance with the search and said that they had identified the man. "Could we BE any more overwhelmed with the response to our CCTV appeal after 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," the tweet read.
Schwimmer, who played the character of Ross in the 90's sitcom, had also joined in on the fun and had posted a hilarious spoof video of himself with his arms full of beer cans in a New York supermarket, strikingly similar to the picture released by the Blackpool police.
He captioned the video with: "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."