Where is Jeffrey Manchester now? Wild true story behind 'Roofman' and the criminal who lived in a toy store
Despite a strong IMDb rating of 7.2/10, Channing Tatum's drama-comedy flick, 'Roofman', failed to generate much revenue at the box office. However, all thanks to strong word of mouth, the PVOD (Premium Video On Demand) debut of the movie from November 11, 2025, is garnering major attention. Based on the life of real-life robber Jeffrey Manchester, the movie recounts his unique robbing style, which earned him the moniker 'Roofman', making many wonder about his unusual crime spree.
Talking about Manchester, he was a former US military sergeant and divorced father of three who began his crime spree in November 1998, according to The Charlotte Observer and The Los Angeles Times. He earned the nickname 'Roofman' or 'Rooftop Robber' for his unusual method of breaking into businesses like McDonald's, Burger King, Toys 'R' Us, and Blockbuster by cutting holes through the roof to enter. By April 2000, he had struck 38 times across nine states, remaining unidentified for years. During his robberies, Manchester would lock employees inside walk-in freezers and later call the police to free them. Victims described him as unusually polite, even telling them to put on their jackets before being locked in.
In May 2000, Manchester was finally arrested after robbing a McDonald's in Belmont, North Carolina, according to The Charlotte Observer. Though sentenced to 45 years in prison, TIME reports he escaped after just four years. On June 15, 2004, he fled Brown Creek Correctional Institution by clinging to the underside of a truck, eventually getting a ride from an unsuspecting prison teacher and later a trucker to Charlotte, NC. Once free, he hid inside a Toys 'R' Us for several months, using baby monitors to watch for activity while hiding during the day.
Suspicion grew when employees noticed missing items and found signs of someone sleeping on an inflatable pool float behind a false wall, though Manchester cleverly relocated to another part of the building and remained undetected for a time. By November 2004, Manchester was living under the alias 'John Zorn' and began attending a local church. There, he met Leigh Wainscott, a single mother, and the two started dating after meeting at a singles brunch at TGI Friday's. In the film adaptation, however, this storyline is slightly altered, as Kirsten Dunst plays Manchester's love interest, reimagined as an employee at the toy store where he was hiding.
In January 2005, Wainscott was approached by police at work, who showed her a photo of her boyfriend and revealed his real identity as Manchester. Cooperating with authorities, Wainscott helped set up a sting operation to capture him, which coincided with her birthday, when they had dinner plans. She called to confirm their meeting time, allowing police to track Manchester's movements as he drove to her apartment, even stopping to buy her flowers on the way. When he arrived and knocked on her door, officers arrested him on the spot. Manchester remains in prison, though he contributed insights during the development of the film 'Roofman'.
