How Alleged Brad Pitt Imposter Duped French Woman Out of $850,000 in Romance Scam - E! Online
A 53-year-old French woman who believed she was in a romantic relationship with Brad Pitt said she was swindled out of $850,000 in a catfishing scheme.
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A French woman says she's out thousands of dollars after being catfished by a person allegedly posing as Brad Pitt.
The 53-year-old—who identified herself as Anne—recently appeared on French news show Sept à huit to share her story, saying she lost almost all of her life savings after being duped into believing she was in a romantic relationship with the Oscar winner.
Anne said was contacted in February 2023 by someone claiming to be Brad's mom Jane Etta Hillhouse, who told her, "It's a woman like you that my son needs," per The Times.
Though Anne was initially skeptical, she said they continued their correspondence until a person claiming to be Brad messaged her, "My mother told me a lot about you."
"At first I said to myself that it was fake, that it's ridiculous," Anne recounted, according to French news network BFM TV. "But I'm not used to social media and I didn't really understand what was happening to me."
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Anne said she started developing feelings after receiving love poems from the impersonator.Â
"There are so few men who write you this kind of thing," she explained. "I liked the man I was talking to. He knew how to talk to women, it was always very well done."
And when Anne divulged that she had come into a divorce settlement with her ex-husband, the scammer allegedly started asking her for money. Anne said the person posing as Brad claimed he had been locked out of his bank accounts due to his divorce from Angelina Jolie and needed a loan for supposed cancer treatments.
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"It hurt me to do it," she shared, "but I told myself that I might save a man's life."
During her appearance on Sept à huit, Anne showed photos she said she had received as proof of Brad's alleged hospitalization. The images, depicting the Fight Club actor transposed over hospital backdrops, appeared to be AI-generated.
Anne said she only realized she had been swindled in the summer of 2024, when the real Brad stepped out with girlfriend Ines de Ramon. By then, she said she had sent approximately $850,000 to the fake Brad.
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Per BFM TV, Anne has since filed a complaint with law enforcement officials about her situation.
"I ask myself why they chose me to do such harm like this?" she said during her appearance on Sept à huit, according to French outlet AFP. "I've never harmed anyone. These people deserve hell."
E! News has reached out to Brad's reps for comment but hasn't heard back.
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