Is Ross Geller a beer thief? Apparently not, and nor is Friends actor David Schwimmer.

The alarm was raised on Tuesday when Blackpool Police put a call out looking for a man – who just so happened to look like a certain fictional New York palaeontologist – suspected of carrying out a theft in a restaurant.

https://twitter.com/DavidSchwimmer/status/1055123896909864966

The Facebook post had soon attracted more than 150,000 comments, mostly from fans of the Emmy-winning sitcom, and forced Schwimmer into producing an alibi.

Case closed, then. But that didn’t stop the people having their fun.

The comments on the Blackpool Police’s post soon resembled a greatest hits of Ross Geller quotes – be warned, if you’re not a fan of Friends, the following will not make much sense to you.

+ “It’s not ross … It’s russ, he’s trying to frame ross to win back Rachel.”

+ “Come on guys its a serious robbery, It’s not that common, it doesn’t happen to every guy and it is a big deal.”

+ “For those that don’t know what the crime was, he’s accused of buying beer while on shift. The side people haven’t yet heard and one I’m unsure on where I stand is, HE WAS ON A BREAK!”

“I bet he shouted ‘PIVOT’ as he lifted the beers …”

-ABC