A viral TikTok a couple of misplaced pockets belonging to a 'Jake Joseph' led to memes and a military of individuals impersonating him — till it was lastly reunited with him

• A TikToker made a public service announcement a couple of pockets he present in New Jersey.
• The video went viral as dozens of individuals modified their accounts to impersonate the pockets’s proprietor.
• The actual proprietor, Jake DeMarco, instructed Insider he woke as much as a barrage of texts from pals who notified him in regards to the TikTok.

On Friday night time, the TikToker @antonio_marchiano made a video asserting he’d discovered a stranger’s pockets in Ocean Metropolis, New Jersey. “We had been simply strolling on the road,” @antonio_marchiano mentioned within the brief clip. He opened the pockets on digicam and flashed an image of a person in commencement apparel.

“Jake Joseph, buddy, if you need your pockets again, we’re gonna put it on this bush over right here,” the TikToker mentioned. He mentioned they had been standing throughout from a lodge known as Ocean Manor as he stuffed it in a shrub.

In simply three days, the video has been considered over 20 million instances. It has spawned a complete motion and meme the place individuals are impersonating the pockets’s proprietor, “Jake Joseph,” by altering their account names and profile photographs. Some are even pretending to be “Jake Joseph’s canine,” mom, little brother, automobile, and in probably the most absurd occasion, the pockets itself.

On account of the video going mega-viral, the true Jake Joseph — whose full title is Jake DeMarco — has been reunited along with his pockets. And he appreciates the web’s relentless humorousness. 

DeMarco, whose center title is Joseph, instructed Insider that he knew he misplaced his pockets on Friday night time. After mini-golfing and going to Cinnabon, the 16-year-old realized the pockets wasn’t in his pocket when he bought residence. He and his pals retraced their footsteps and looked for half-hour however could not discover it.

“I used to be actually harassed as a result of I’ve had that pockets for a extremely very long time; my granddad gave it to me,” DeMarco mentioned. He defined that the photograph of the particular person graduating within the pockets wasn’t really him both — it was a good friend who graduated a number of years in the past. Whereas the pockets did not have a lot money, it contained worthwhile photographs, his debit card, and Wawa coupons.

He was alerted to the viral TikTok video the following morning when he acquired a slew of texts from pals who had seen the viral TikTok. Fortunately, he was close to the world and shrub the place @antonio_marchiano had left his pockets for him.

DeMarco and the TikToker filmed a FaceTime video shortly after the pockets was recovered, which gained lots of of 1000’s of views. The feedback had been full of the identical impostor Jake Josephs now claiming that the true Jake DeMarco was additionally a clone.

“That is not him,” wrote a consumer who claimed to be DeMarco’s twin brother. “I do know my twin brother once I see him.”

DeMarco mentioned he discovered the hoaxes and memes “very amusing.”

“It was fairly humorous as a result of seeing these feedback I simply knew, like, it is not me, as a result of my [full] title is not even Jake Joseph,” he mentioned. “Instantly, I used to be, like, all these accounts clearly are faux.”

Among the fraudsters have gone as far as to make detailed edits of the person within the commencement photograph and use it as their profile thumbnail. One consumer edited a canine’s face onto the blue robe, whereas one other particular person added a thick white beard and mentioned they had been DeMarco’s grandfather.

Folks even pretended to be the cash inside Jake’s pockets, Ocean Manor, and the shrub throughout the road. “It is true Jake, I am the bush,” a consumer named “The Bush Exterior Ocean Manor” wrote in a remark with dozens of likes on the identical clip. “Please come get your pockets, it is uncomfortable…”

“We’re all nervous about Jake’s pockets however THERE IS A 25% OFF WHEN GETTING A ROOM FOR THE FIRST TIME, COME NOW TO OCEAN MANOR!” an account named “Ocean Manor” with 0 followers joked beneath @antonio_marchiano’s video.

Even after DeMarco posted a TikTok himself clarifying that his title shouldn’t be Jake Joseph, a number of faux Jake Joseph accounts stormed the remark part to assert he was mendacity. 

An account known as “Jake Joseh’s Pockets” wrote, “Bro do not lose me once more.” 

In the end, DeMarco was overjoyed to be reunited along with his pockets and could be very grateful for the web, regardless of all the trolling.

“He was a pleasant man, I used to be actually grateful for him,” DeMarco mentioned of @antonio_marchiano who thought to show to TikTok to search out him. “Not solely did I discover my pockets, it was a extremely cool solution to discover it.”