And then you will be asked by the judge, “Did he appear to act suspiciously, or did he act suspiciously?”
‘Appeared’ can also be an indicator of not-100%-surety as in “He appeared to be 5ft 8in tall.”
The only way to confirm, or disprove, that that person is 5’8” {+/- say .5 in} is to actually measure them and see what the reality is.
As I replied decades ago in court; “He appeared suspious because of his behavior. . .(and then went onto describe his behavior and dress).