Brad Pitt is speaking out following the recent arrest of scammers who allegedly pretended to be the actor to get money.
According to Spain’s Ministry of Interior, five people were arrested for scamming two women out of about $362,000 online. More people are under investigation beyond the five who were arrested.
“It’s awful that scammers take advantage of fans’ strong connection with celebrities and this is an important reminder to not respond to unsolicited online outreach, especially from actors who have no social media presence,” a spokesperson for Pitt told TheWrap.
Three of the imposters were arrested back in November with the other two being caught in July. According to the Monday press release, the group posed as the actor in messages with intentions of a relationship. After gaining trust, they asked for money transfers citing project investments.
Imposter scammers have been a growing issue for actors to deal with. Many have publicly addressed the subject by posting on their social media platforms that they only have one account and/or don’t reach out to people via DMs. Florence Pugh, Tom Hanks, Jake Johnson and more have all spoken up about the issue.
“The only bad advice I give is on my podcast,” Johnson said last year after learing from a fan that someone posed as him and gave her advice in Edinburgh.
Pugh posted more recently warning her fans of fake accounts.
“Just wanted to remind everyone that I don’t have any other account other than this one,” she wrote. “No private pages or private chats or private messaging accounts … just this one.”
