Woman who gave £700k to fake Brad Pitt and now homeless says she's glad she did it
Anne Deneuchatel lost her husband, £700k and her home after being tricked into thinking she was in a romantic relationship with the Hollywood actor Brad Pitt
A woman who gave £700,000 to a scammer who pretended to be Brad Pitt ended up homeless and divorced - but said she doesn’t fully regret her decisions because of one key reason.
Anne Deneuchatel, a 53-year-old interior designer, had an online affair with a scammer who used AI-generated pictures and videos to convince her that she was talking to Brad.
In February 2023, someone pretending to be Brad’s mother sent Anne a message on Instagram. The next day, ‘Brad’ reached out himself, which started a year-long online affair.
Anne told French media that there were “so few men” who would be so romantic, adding: "I liked the man I was talking to. He knew how to talk to women, it was always very well done.”
She then divorced her husband and began sending money to the scammer who was pretending to be Brad. Anne sent more than £7,500 for ‘customs fees' on luxury items, and wired across £50,500 for kidney cancer treatment.
Anne said that while it “cost” her, she thought she may be “saving a man’s life”, The Telegraph reported. However, in 2024, Anne saw photographs of the real Brad with his girlfriend, Ines de Ramon and she began to learn the truth.
Even then, she fell victim to someone pretending to be an FBI agent who offered to “rescue” her from the scam if she sent across £4,200. Reflecting on the scam, Anne said: "I ask myself why they chose me to do such harm like this? I've never harmed anyone. These people deserve hell."
In the aftermath of the swindling, Anne is now broke and without a home, The Sun reported. She has been forced to move in with a friend and has set up a fundraising campaign to cover her legal fees. After Anne filed a police complaint, an investigation is now underway into the situation.
Anne experienced mental health difficulties after the scam, French media channel TF1 reported, including severe depression. She had also been hospitalised for treatment. However, the 53-year-old said that there was still a positive side of the whole affair - and that was the divorce from her husband.
Anne told Le Monde this week that her millionaire husband before the scam was 19 years her senior, and that they lived together in Mauritius in a villa by the sea. She said she felt she was living in a “gilded prison” and criticised her husband’s treatment of her.
The interior designer explained: “In reality, it was a gilded prison… He turned out to be selfish and manipulative. He convinced me to close my boutique. I gradually became financially dependent on him.” She continued: "At one point, it seemed easier to help 'Brad' than to help myself."
We are "all potential prey to romance scams", Anne said, adding that she was a "sensible, level-headed, hard-working woman". She is now telling her story through a book, Je ne serai plus un proie (I will no longer be prey).