LONDON (AP) — British police are hunting a shoplifter who bears a striking resemblance to Ross Geller, the character played by David Schwimmer on the TV show "Friends."

Facebook users noticed the similarity when police posted surveillance-camera footage of a man carrying a carton of cans from a restaurant in Blackpool, northwest England.

The actor responded with a Twitter video that showed him scuttling furtively through a convenience store clutching a carton of beer.

Schwimmer wrote: "Officers, I swear it wasn't me. As you can see, I was in New York." He wished police well with the investigation.

Lancashire Police later confirmed that "David Schwimmer was in America on this date."

Britain's Daily Star newspaper ran the story Thursday under the headline "I'll Beer There for You," a play on a line from the "Friends" theme.