Security footage of the incident showed the alleged thief hastily exiting the building with a case of beer in his hand, but his face was pixilated and his features were indiscernible. Police were unable to ascertain his identity via digital facial recognition technology, and there were no other leads that could have cracked open any new details, so it seemed as though the case of the cold ones would ultimately become a cold case in and of itself (via Georgetown Law Center on Privacy & Technology).
However, hope was far from lost. After one particular detective noticed a few significant parallels between the alleged thief’s face and one belonging to a major Hollywood actor, he started to diversify his tactics of pursuit. According to ABC News, NYPD officials resorted to using a photograph of Woody Harrelson — per New York Post, from his appearance in “The Hunger Games” — to narrow down the search for the alleged CVS brew burglar.
