Surprise, surprise: A rep has found a way to explain away photos of Charlie Sheen wearing a ridiculous mustache “disguise,” which In Touch magazine alleged he donned in order to meet a mistress. A flack told People magazine that the “Two and a Half Men” star was playing a prank on paparazzi as he engaged in part of his rehab program.

“The woman in question is the sister of one of Sheen’s camp mates [in treatment], and Sheen was only responding to a 12th-step call,” the rep insisted. “Since Sheen knew he was being followed and how this would look, he wore the mustache in a tongue-in-cheek disguise gesture.”