The viral photo of the naked man straddling a shark caused an internet stir as to who it could be. Two high profile lookalikes, one a US football coach and the other a sandwich chain millionaire, have denied being the grinning man in the disturbing snap. The photograph started doing the rounds and gained traction after it was tweeted by British television presenter and animal welfare activist Anneka Svenska, who urged followers to hunt the man down.

Now it appears the mystery over the identity of the man has been solved. And it seems the man in question is a former NYC police officer, according to a sports anchor in Orlando.

The picture sparked outrage from wildlife organisations who criticised the man for ‘humiliating’ the animal. But now David Pingalore, sports anchor for WKMG-TV, has revealed that he may know who it is. ‘This guy lives in upstate New York, that photo was taken two years ago off the shores of Long Island – not in Florida,’ Pingalore said.

The former cop is now ‘afraid for his life’ because he fears shark activists will come after him. The shark picture has reportedly been on the Internet for a couple of years and was meant to be a parody.