A police e-fit of a burglar went viral last week after officers posted it on social media.
And it wasn't because the man had the dangerous good looks of hot felon Jeremy Meeks.
No, this man has such a wide, toothy smile that it could easily be mistaken for a Snapchat filter.
In fact, people couldn't believe the e-fit was real and thought it was a late April Fool's Day prank.
We've issued an efit for of a suspect in a distraction burglary in Stratford in February. If you have any information please contact us. https://t.co/NipFniL1ed pic.twitter.com/oGiYfxIi2e
— Warwickshire Police (@warkspolice) April 3, 2018
It drew thousands of hilarious comments with the man being compared to the Cheshire cat.
But police in Warwickshire insist it isn't a joke and released a statement saying the e-fit is real and a woman was the victim of a "horrible crime".
The man is wanted in connection with a distraction burglary which occured in Stratford-upon-Avon on February 5th.
We can confirm that this is real and that we anticipated the attention! But jokes aside, it was created from a description provided and it's serious as a woman was victim of a horrible crime. Hopefully the attention will mean we identify the offender/bring him to justice quicker
— Warwickshire Police (@warkspolice) April 3, 2018
Now, a man from Devon's been forced to deny he's the Cheshire cat burglar despite a striking similarity to the e-fit.
Richard Fox's friends pointed out that he matched the picture as he has a big smile.
The landscape photographer then tweeted a brilliant response - a photo of himself and the suspect alongside each other with the caption, "Looks nothing like me."
Looks nothing like me.... pic.twitter.com/XYjpqBOQ53
— Richard Fox (@FoxyRider) April 10, 2018
Speaking to the Plymouth Herald, Richard said he didn't know about the Cheshire cat burglar until his mate tagged him on Twitter:
"I think it’s because I’ve got a big mouth."
"I also wear the hat a lot as I’m a landscape photographer – so I’m often out on Dartmoor taking pictures."
"I’ve never been to Warwickshire and it certainly wasn’t me."
Warwickshire police say the hunt is still on for the man in the e-fit.
