In the News
Mockery of woman conned out of $855K by AI-generated Brad Pitt leads TV Channel to pull interview
Jan 15, 2025
It's a con even more elaborate than "Oceans 11."
A French woman who thought she was in a romantic relationship with Hollywood star Brad Pitt handed over 830,000 euros ($855,000) to scammers as part of an elaborate, year-long con that involved an AI-generated version of the "Moneyball" actor.
To add insult to injury, when she discussed her misfortune on French television channel TF1, the 53-year-old French interior designer known only as 'Anne' received a wave of mockery and trolling so big that the station had to pull her interview with its Seven to Eight show.
“The story broadcast this Sunday has resulted in a wave of harassment against the witness,” TF1 presenter Harry Roselmack posted on his X account Tuesday. “For the protection of victims, we have decided to withdraw it from our platforms.”
Anne said she began talking to the fake version of the "Fight Club" actor sometime in February 2023, after an account posing as Pitt's mother, Jane Etta Pitt, sent her a message on Instagram while she was on a skiing holiday in the French Alps.
Speaking on TF1, Anne said that the account “told me that her son needed someone like me,” according to AFP.
Over the next few months, she exchanged several messages on different social media and messaging platforms, including WhatsApp, with the fake Pitt, even receiving AI-generated selfies of the 61-year-old actor, whose facsimile told her he needed money for cancer treatment.
“At first I said to myself that it was fake, that it’s ridiculous,” she continued. “But I’m not used to social media and I didn’t really understand what was happening to me.”
The request for money came after the scammers told Anne that Pitt was in hospital with kidney cancer and needed money for the treatment, but that his bank accounts were allegedly frozen due to his divorce proceedings with ex-wife Angelina Jolie.
She was hesitant at first, but eventually transferred the large sum of money to an account in Turkey after receiving an email from the fake star’s “doctor.”
Anne said she finally realized she had been the victim of a scam after she saw pictures of the real Pitt with his current partner, Inès de Ramon, last summer. “I ask myself why they chose me to do such harm like this?” she said. “I’ve never harmed anyone. These people deserve hell.”
The French newspaper Sud Ouest reported that Anne was going through divorce proceedings with a millionaire entrepreneur at the time. She reportedly suffered from severe depression and was hospitalized following the scam.
Police are now investigating the con, but the interview has nevertheless sparked a deluge of jokes online.
Among the individuals, organizations and companies making jokes at Anne's expense was Netflix France, which promoted “four films to see with Brad Pitt (really) for free” in a post on X.
Artificial intelligence has increased the risk of identity theft and fraud online, which contributed to over $8.8 million in losses in the U.S., according to the Federal Trade Commission.
A global study conducted by the computer security company McAfee found that one in four people worldwide have either experienced an AI-voice cloning scam or know someone who has.
**This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
**Link to original Mockery of woman conned out of $855K by AI-generated Brad Pitt leads TV channel to pull interview
In the News
Nigerian Man Sentenced to Over 11 Years in Federal Prison for Conspiring to Launder Tens of Millions
Criminal Known Online as ‘Ray Hushpuppi’ Laundered Proceeds of School Financing Scam, Business Email Compromise Fraud and Other Cyber Schemes
Monday, November 7, 2022
LOS ANGELES – A prolific international fraudster who conspired to launder tens of millions of dollars through a series of online scams and flaunted his luxurious, crime-funded lifestyle on social media was sentenced today to 135 months in federal prison.
Ramon Olorunwa Abbas, a 40-year-old Nigerian national, also known by his Instagram handle, “Ray Hushpuppi,” was sentenced by United States District Judge Otis D. Wright II, who also ordered Abbas to pay $1,732,841 in restitution to two fraud victims.
Abbas pleaded guilty in April 2021 to one count of conspiracy to engage in money laundering. He was arrested in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in June 2020 and has remained in federal custody since his expulsion from the UAE.
“Abbas bragged on social media about his lavish lifestyle – a lifestyle funded by his involvement in transnational fraud and money laundering conspiracies targeting victims around the world,” said United States Attorney Martin Estrada. “Money laundering and business email compromise scams are a massive international crime problem, and we will continue to work with our law enforcement and international partners to identify and prosecute those involved, wherever they may be.”
“Ramon Abbas, a.k.a. ‘Hushpuppi,’ targeted both American and international victims, becoming one of the most prolific money launderers in the world,” said Don Alway, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “Abbas leveraged his social media platforms – where he amassed a considerable following – to gain notoriety and to brag about the immense wealth he acquired by conducting business email compromise scams, online bank heists and other cyber-enabled fraud that financially ruined scores of victims and provided assistance to the North Korean regime. This significant sentence is the result of years’ worth of collaboration among law enforcement in multiple countries and should send a clear warning to international fraudsters that the FBI will seek justice for victims, regardless of whether criminals operate within or outside United States borders.”
Abbas conspired with Ghaleb Alaumary, 37, of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, a convicted money launderer, to launder funds derived from various crimes, including bank cyber-heists, business email compromise (BEC) schemes and other online frauds. BEC schemes typically involve gaining unauthorized access to a business email account and attempting to trick a victim business into making an unauthorized wire transfer.
In January 2019, Abbas conspired with Alaumary to launder funds stolen from a bank in Malta by providing account information for banks in Romania and Bulgaria. The United States has charged North Korean hackers with committing the bank cyber-heist in Malta, and alleged that those funds were destined for the North Korean government. Abbas has admitted that the intended loss with respect to the Maltese bank was approximately $14.7 million.
In May 2019, Abbas conspired with Alaumary to launder millions of pounds stolen from a professional soccer club in the United Kingdom as well as a British company. In connection with that scheme, Abbas provided Alaumary with details for a bank account in Mexico that “could handle millions and not block,” according to court documents.
Abbas also fraudulently induced a New York-based law firm in October 2019 to transfer approximately $922,857 to an account that a co-conspirator controlled under someone else’s name.
Alaumary was charged separately and pleaded guilty in November 2020 to one count of conspiracy to engage in money laundering. He is serving a 140-month federal prison sentence and was ordered to pay more than $30 million in restitution.
Abbas also admitted in his plea agreement to conspiring with others to defraud an individual in Qatar who sought a loan of $15 million to build a school.
At today’s sentencing hearing, Judge Wright ordered Abbas to pay $922,857 in restitution to the law firm victim and $809,983 in restitution to the businessperson in Qatar.
Abbas and another conspirator duped the victim businessperson into paying approximately $330,000 to fund an “investor’s account” to facilitate the loan. Abbas specifically directed the victim to send $100,000 to a bank account controlled by a co-conspirator, and $230,000 to the bank account of a luxury watch seller. Abbas used those funds for his personal benefit, including purchasing a $230,000 Richard Mille RM11-03 watch, which he arranged to have brought to him from New York to Dubai. The watch made numerous appearances on Abbas’ wrist on his now-defunct Instagram account, often with the hashtag #RichardMille.
Approximately $50,000 of proceeds from the scheme were used to fraudulently acquire a St. Christopher (St. Kitts) and Nevis citizenship and a passport for Abbas through a sham marriage to a St. Kitts citizen.
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In January and February 2020, Abbas and another conspirator corresponded with the victim businessperson, attempting to fraudulently induce a further payment of $575,000 in purported taxes to release the $15 million loan. In February 2020, the victim sent approximately $299,983 to Kenyan bank accounts specified by another conspirator. In March 2020, Abbas fraudulently induced the victim to send another $180,000 to U.S.-based bank accounts; those funds were subsequently laundered with assistance from several co-conspirators.
“By his own admission, during just an 18-month period defendant conspired to launder over $300 million,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum. “While much of this intended loss did not ultimately materialize, [Abbas’] willingness and ability to participate in large-scale money laundering highlights the seriousness of his criminal conduct.”
The FBI investigated this matter as part of Operation Top Dog. The FBI thanks the government of the United Arab Emirates and the Dubai Police Department for their substantial assistance in this matter.
Assistant United States Attorney Khaldoun Shobaki of the Cyber and Intellectual Property Crimes Section prosecuted this case. The Justice Department Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs provided substantial assistance in this matter.
Originally Posted: https://www.justice.gov/usao-cdca/pr/nigerian-man-sentenced-over-11-years-federal-prison-conspiring-launder-tens-millions
Contact
Thom Mrozek Director of Media Relations thom.mrozek@usdoj.gov (213) 894-6947
Hushpuppi's Instagram posts about his luxurious lifestyle attracted hundreds of thousands of likes