Police in Bradford, northern England, were baffled when a
portly figure in an ill-fitting Batman costume brought them
a 27-year-old man wanted for burglary. REUTERS/West
Yorkshire Police
It wasn't Batman, it was a joker. A day after making
headlines around the world for handing over a suspect to police
dressed as Batman, the identity of Britain's mysterious caped
crusader has been revealed as Stan, a takeaway food delivery
man.
Police in Bradford, northern England, were baffled when a
portly figure in an ill-fitting Batman costume brought them a
27-year-old man wanted for burglary in the early hours of
February 25 before disappearing into the night.
They released closed-circuit television footage of the
incident on Monday and after much speculation, the masked
hero disclosed his true identity to media on Tuesday. He was
not Batman's alter ego Bruce Wayne, but driver Stan Worby,
39.
He also said he had not brought the man in as part of any
crime-fighting crusade. He had simply agreed to accompany a
friend to the police station to offer him moral support, and
had decided to wear the Batman suit as a practical joke.
"Obviously it was done as a joke," he told ITV's Daybreak
programme, saying he was "gobsmacked" by the attention.
Worby said he had been to London's Wembley Stadium earlier in
the day to watch local team Bradford City play in the English
Capital One (League) Cup soccer final and had worn fancy
dress for the occasion.
While there, Worby was contacted by his friend and agreed to
take him in on his return from London.
"Obviously he wanted to get straight down there and I wanted
my bed as it was half (past) one in the morning," Worby said.
He also insisted the pictures which showed he perhaps lacked
the body of a superhero were unfair.
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