French woman in her 50s loses €830,000 to 'fake' Brad Pitt and plans to sue banks

A French woman in her 50s who lost a large sum of money to a scammer posing as Hollywood star Brad Pitt is preparing to sue several banks.
According to French broadcaster BFM TV and other outlets on the 13th (local time), a woman identified only as A, who lives in the French overseas territory of Réunion, plans to seek damages, arguing that the banks failed to act on suspicious transfer requests.
In 2023, she began exchanging messages on Instagram with someone who introduced himself as Brad Pitt. She fell for his advances and even went through a divorce.
After learning that she had received a large divorce settlement, the "fake" Brad Pitt claimed he needed hospital treatment and asked her for money. Over several months, she transferred a total of €830,000 (about 1.4 billion won).
In the summer of 2024, she saw a photo of the "real" Brad Pitt with his girlfriend and only then realized she had been scammed.
She subsequently filed a criminal complaint against the scammer.
She argues that the banks were at fault for approving transfers without question, even though the payment references contained odd phrases such as "William Bradley Pitt surgery" and "William Bradley Pitt kidney transplant," referring to Brad Pitt’s legal name.
“Banks must take responsibility for what they have done,” she said, adding, “There is a loophole in the system, and this must never happen again.”
A spokesperson for Brad Pitt, when her story first became public early last year, told the media, “It is appalling that scammers exploit the strong bond between fans and celebrities,” and urged fans to be cautious.
newssu@fnnews.com Kim Soo-yeon Reporter