David Schwimmer says police were 'disappointed' to rule him out as thief suspect
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Friends" star David Schwimmer has told how cops were "a little disappointed" when they ruled him out as a suspect in a theft in Blackpool.
The actor hit the headlines when fans pointed out how he was the spitting image of a suspect captured on CCTV leaving a restaurant carrying what appeared to be a carton of cans.
Schwimmer, 52, responded by posting a video to his Twitter account that showed him scurrying through a convenience store carrying a carton of beer before looking up furtively at a CCTV camera.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He captioned the video: "Officers, I swear it wasn't me. As you can see, I was in New York.
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"To the hardworking Blackpool Police, good luck with the investigation."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He added the hashtag #itwasntme to the post.
It led to Lancashire Police officially ruling out the actor as a suspect.
They said: “Police thank you to everyone for your speedy responses.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“We have investigated this matter thoroughly and have confirmed that David Schwimmer was in America on this date!”
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Discussing that on Channel 4's "The Lateish Show with Mo Gilligan," he said: "I got a message from a buddy of mine saying 'Have you seen this from Blackpool Police?
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The police had posted something that was really funny. They were a little disappointed that they had ruled me out as a suspect; it wasn't me.
"They said something kind of cheeky and I thought 'Good on them for having a sense of humor', but I couldn't resist responding.
"So I went that day when I found out with a buddy of mine and we went to my local shop, this little market around the corner from where I live in the East Village.
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"I know the manager there so I showed him what was going on and said 'Hey, can I just shoot something?'. Just to let them know I was definitely involved."
However, Schwimmer admitted he had his own history with a petty crime when he stole a chocolate bar when he was a child.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He said: "When I was a kid, the harshest lesson I learned was when I stole a Snickers bar and I think I was like nine.
"It was a store where they knew everyone, it was that kind of neighborhood, and they knew my parents and knew my sister, but I just really wanted this Snickers bar.
"And it was after baseball practice and I didn't have any allowance or anything on me so I just snuck it.
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"I got out the door and the owner of the store was like, 'David?' Of course, he knows me! 'Come here'.
"And I almost just lost it, cause I knew. You know when you're busted. He said 'Do you want me to tell your parents?' and that was the worst!
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"It was bad. I was mortified...but it didn't stop me from stealing."
Schwimmer's "lookalike" has since appeared in court charged with a string of fraud and theft offenses.
In February, Abdulah Husseini made a brief appearance via a video link from HMP Wormwood Scrubs to deny the charges.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Friends" ran for ten years from 1994 to 2004 and also starred Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and Matthew Perry.
Married dad-of-one Schwimmer, born and based in New York, starred in "Friends" from 1994 until its finale in 2004.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In 2016, he won acclaim by starring as lawyer Robert Kardashian in "American Crime Story," about the trial of OJ Simpson.