French Woman Scammed of Rs 7.40 Crores by Fake Brad Pitt
A French woman was scammed by an impersonator posing as Brad Pitt, losing nearly €1 million over 1.5 years through fake romantic exchanges and requests for money.
A French woman has fallen victim to a sophisticated scam that caused her severe financial loss and emotional distress. The scammer pretended to be Hollywood superstar Brad Pitt, using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to create convincing photos and videos to trick her into believing she was in a romantic relationship with him.
The scam began in February 2023 when 53-year-old interior designer Anne received a message on social media from someone claiming to be Brad Pitt’s mother. Soon after, she got another message from an account impersonating Brad Pitt himself. The scammer told Anne that his "mother" had spoken highly of her, leading to what seemed like the start of an “unlikely friendship.”
Though Anne was initially suspicious, the scammer used AI-generated images and videos of Brad Pitt to make the situation more believable. He sent romantic and poetic messages to Anne, which made her feel special. Anne said, “There are so few men who write you this kind of thing. I liked the man I was talking to. He knew how to talk to women, it was always very well done.”
As their "relationship" progressed, the fake Brad Pitt promised Anne expensive gifts, but asked her to pay customs fees to receive them. The requests quickly added up to €9,000 (about ?7.5 lakh), which Anne paid. Over time, the scammer’s demands for money increased.
Anne later shared with the scammer that she was going through a divorce settlement worth millions from her wealthy businessman husband. The scammer used this information to further exploit her, claiming that he urgently needed money for his kidney cancer treatment. He also told Anne that he couldn’t access his own money due to an ongoing divorce from his "wife," actress Angelina Jolie.
To support his story, the scammer sent Anne AI-generated images of Brad Pitt in a hospital bed. However, the scammer always avoided phone or video calls.
This deceit continued for over 1.5 years, during which Anne lost nearly 1 million euros. Her suspicions grew when she saw a picture of the real Brad Pitt with his new girlfriend, Ines de Ramon, in the media on 13th January 2025. This led her to report the scam to the authorities.
According to investigations, Anne lost an estimated €830,000 (around ?7.4 crore). The authorities suspect that Anne’s social media posts about her luxurious ski trip in Tignes may have caught the scammer’s attention, making her a target.
Anne is now in a hospital, suffering from severe depression due to the emotional and financial toll of the scam. She expressed her pain, saying, “I ask myself why they chose me to do such harm like this…I’ve never harmed anyone. These people deserve hell.”
On 15th January 2025, a representative for Brad Pitt issued a warning to fans, advising them to be cautious of impersonation scams. The spokesperson said, “It’s awful that scammers take advantage of fans' strong connection with celebrities…this is an important reminder to not respond to unsolicited online outreach, especially from actors who have no social media presence.”
