Arrest warrant as 'Ross from Friends' lookalike fails to show up for court

A CCTV appeal released by the police to identify Mr Husseni attracted hundreds of thousands of comments on social media Credit: Blackpool Police/David Schwimmer/PA

A warrant has been issued for the arrest of a "lookalike" of Friends star David Schwimmer after he failed to attend court.

36 year old Abdulah Husseni had been summonsed to appear at Blackpool Magistrates' Court on Tuesday accused of theft and fraud.

A police appeal to find Mr Husseni gained widespread attention on social media after thousands of people pointed out his likeness to the character Ross Geller from the popular US sitcom "Friends".

The actor David Schwimmer responded by posting a video to his Twitter account that showed him scurrying through a convenience store carrying a tray of beer before looking up furtively at a CCTV camera.

He captioned the video: "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."

District Judge Jane Goodwin issued a warrant not backed for bail after Husseni failed to answer his summons. He had received instructions by post to attend court for 9.30am.