The other day I came across a bookmark I had made some time ago, and for some reason I decided it was time to write about it. The story is about a French woman who got dupped in a scam that made her think she was in a long-term relationship with Brad Pitt. The final bill apparently was over €800k !
So the story is an old classic, but ‘augmented’ by the use of technology. A 50+ year old married woman (married to a wealthy entrepreneur) got a message from a person claiming to be Brad Pitt’s mother. The article does not mention what was in the message, but the exchange led to another message from a person claiming to be the famous Brad Pitt himself.
The article continues that over an extended period, the exchanges increased and the woman « believed that she was in a long-term relationship with the actor for more than a year, and even expressed that she thought they were in love »* !
So what made her shell out over €800k? Well, that is where it gets absurd ! According to the article, after obtaining the victim’s trust and making her feel she is in a long-term relationship with Brad Pitt, the actor’s scaming fake told the lady that he needed money for cancer treatment because his accounts were frozen due to his divorce proceedings with Angelina Jolie. Wow ! What a story and what a scam !
I am truly puzzled though, because the victim in question is an active professional (interior designer) and married to a wealthy entrepreneur (No idea if the couple has any children). So why was it that such a person can come to believe that a celebrity like Brad Pitt would find her, lead a virtual relationship with her, to even be in love with her, and need to resort to her help for cancer treatment ?! Regardless of whether his accounts are frozen or not !
I wonder how the husband (or possibly, the ex-husband by now) feels about the situation ? I am also curious to know where the money came from. I guess the upside is that he can at least think that he is second only to Brad Pitt !
Paris, October 23, 2025
Zeejay
*_ The Guardian, January 16, 2025.