Brad Pitt responds as five people arrested for impersonating star that scammed two women out of £261,000
Brad Pitt has been put in the difficult position of having to speak out after five people were arrested for allegedly scamming two women out of $350,000 (£261,852).
The high-profile A-list celebrity has appeared in a plethora of blockbusters over the years such as Oceans 11, Mr and Mrs Smith, and Fight Club.
However, his popularity has been used to commit scams against two women, who were tricked out of their money.
It begun when two ladies were contacted through an online fan page, where they were approached by someone claiming to be Pitt himself.
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The relationships eventually turned romantic, and the women were led to believe that they were in a relationship with Pitt, even though they had never met the offender in person.
Now, his representative has released a statement to the New York Times newspaper to clear the air about what really happened.
If anyone truly thought this was Pitt, Matthew Hilktzik wants to remind fans that the actor has ‘no social media presence’ at all, and wouldn’t be contacting anyone to ask for money.
He told the publication: "It's awful that scammers take advantage of fans' strong connection with celebrities."
Explained that even though he hadn’t heard of the case beforehand, that fans should note that the star will not be contacting anyone via X, Facebook or Instagram and they shouldn’t believe anyone who is posing as him.
Hilktzik continued: "But this is an important reminder to not respond to unsolicited online outreach, especially from actors who have no social media presence."
Spain's Interior Ministry released a statement this week to confirm that its authorities made three arrests last November, and another two in July regarding the scam.
The statement explained that the culprits ‘managed to make these women believe they had become so close to the well-known American actor that they believed they had a romantic relationship with him’.
A woman from Bilbao allegedly sent the person posing as Pitt €150,000 (£125,000) while another from Granada, sent €175,000 (£146,000).
At the moment, only €85,000 (£71,000) has been recovered during the investigation, which has accused the group of people of money laundering and fraud.
Pitt is currently promoting his new AppleTV+ series Wolfs, alongside his friend and co-star George Clooney.
Pitt, 60 has recently been said to have been involved with the 34 year-old for the past two years called Ines De Ramon, a jewellery designer.
The pair were seen at the premiere of Wolfs during the 81st Venice Film Festival this year and according to a source, who told Us Weekly, they’re ‘in love.’
They said: "They're super in love. It is a big deal (they took their romance public in Venice.)".
Apparently the couple have ‘hippy' spirits, initially bonding over their love of music and art, according to another source.
They added: "Brad loves introducing Ines to his friends because she's such a joy to be around. She brings out the best in Brad.(Things are) serious between Brad and Ines. He's very committed to her and their future."
Britt Jones