Police e-fits are something which should be taken seriously; after all, they help catch criminals and aid the police in their search for them.
But what happens when the e-fit in question is so unrealistic, the only reaction it brings about is laughter – and a lot of trolling?
Well, that’s exactly what happened recently when Northamptonshire Police posted some e-fits to their social media accounts, attracting plenty of (unwanted) attention.
The e-fits were posted to their Facebook page on December 27, and encouraged the public to come forward with any information regarding the two suspects.
The two men were alleged to have been involved in a firearms incident which took place at Stone House Mews, Corby, England on the evening of December 22, when a firearm was discharged, injuring a 38-year-old man.
The post read:
The first man police would like to identify is white, possibly Russian, 5ft 10ins, of large build with light brown collar length hair, swept back from his face. He also had a full, light brown beard and wore a grey zipped top and t-shirt.
The second man was also white, aged 28 to 30, 5ft 10ins, slim and had short, black hair and facial stubble. It’s unclear if the men made off from Stone House Mews on foot or in a vehicle.
Police are appealing for the public’s help to identify two men suspected of being involved in a firearms incident.The…
Posted by Northamptonshire Police on Thursday, 27 December 2018
But no matter how much information they provided to the public, all everyone could focus on were the two pictures of the suspects which appeared underneath the post.
Because the pictures, well, let’s just say they don’t look very, erm, life-like.
In fact, they look like they’ve been taken straight from a video game. And not even a video game from this century – maybe one from the 90s at a push.
Many criticised Northamptonshire Police for the quality of the pictures, with one person asking them if they hadn’t received any new e-fit software programmes for Christmas.
Others simply couldn’t believe what they were seeing, and soon the post had hundreds of comments with people mercifully trolling the police for the images.
One person wrote:
I always wondered where my Sims characters were nowadays. Disappointed isn’t the word. [sic]
Another commented:
Have you logged into GTA instead of the e-fit system [sic]
While another said:
I actually thought this was a spoof police account. Then I got worried for my son’s GTA characters. Honestly, you’d get better pictures using an old Wii. [sic]
And another added:
The one on the right was my left back for 8 seasons on Football Manager! He had a bullet of a left foot. [sic]
No update has been provided regarding whether the two men have been apprehended, but police did say a silver Audi A4 with a 52 registration has been recovered from the scene.
They’re asking for anyone who might recognise the car – or recognise the e-fits of the two men – to come forward.
The post continued to say ‘a team of dedicated officers’ is investigating the incident, before informing the public the victim has since been released from hospital following treatment to his stomach and neck.
Witnesses or anyone with information about this incident are being advised to call police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
The public is also advised not to approach the two men if they do see them, but to call police on 999 immediately.
If you have a story you want to tell, send it to [email protected].
A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).