It was a crime scene photo that captured the pop-ular imagination.

A Pepsi machine — apparently intact, surrounded by bushes — discovered lying forlornly on its side in a potato field southwest of Grand Falls, N.B.

The picture was released on Dec. 27 by RCMP in Saint-Léonard, just up the Trans-Canada Highway.

The unexpected appearance of the machine — not a typical landscape feature in the potato fields of Madawaska County — had befuddled investigators for months.

Since the abducted appliance was recovered on Sept. 29, 2017, RCMP noted in a news release, there had been no reports of a "machine missing or stolen and attempts to locate who may own the machine have so far been unsuccessful."

When CBC News tweeted about the mystery on Dec. 27, Twitter users swiftly rallied to speculate on the identity of the thieves and their motivations.

Maybe the person who stole it was on coke. —@MPBentley

Maybe Bubbles, Ricky and Julian were on a holiday season road trip. —@StephenWickens1

Others were appalled that the unlikely find had received national media attention.

This is why other countries think Canada is not real. —@Gunner1812

Pop Fiction —@kmskflix

But the the mystery — or part of it — fizzled quickly.

On Dec. 28, RCMP issued a statement indicating they had made contact with the owner of the Pepsi machine who had, for so long, remained elusive.

UPDATE - Pepsi machine owner located <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GrandFalls?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GrandFalls</a> <a href="https://t.co/ZzKqz1CuK4">https://t.co/ZzKqz1CuK4</a> —@RCMPNB

Oh come on RCMP, seriously there are bigger potatoes to fry —@lizardlaw

The machine, police said, had been stolen from a business in Grand Falls. In light of the new information, RCMP said, they had turned over the file to the Grand Falls Police Force.

The update prompted a new effervescence of comments about what could happen when the sticky-fingered culprit is found.

It only had 23 cans inside so the cops said they didn't have a case. —@bManSays

The thief remains at large.

But it would be a mistake for them to rest easy.

The Mounties always get their can. —@inkyamy



