In a distressing case of deception, yet another catfish has exploited the identity of a celebrity to defraud an unsuspecting individual.
A 47-year-old woman who wants to be known only as Lea was duped into believing she was romantically involved with Martin Henderson, known for his role as Jack Sheridan on Netflix’s popular series Virgin River.
Over two years, Lea communicated with someone she thought was Martin, and last year, she went as far as relocating to New Zealand, Henderson’s home country, to be closer to him. She even harboured dreams of marriage and starting a family with him.
However, doubt crept in when she was set to meet “Martin” at Auckland Airport on New Year’s Eve, only to receive a message claiming he suffered a health scare in South Africa during filming. Yet, on the same day, Lea’s friend showed her an article featuring Henderson fit and well at a bike event in Matakana, South Africa.
Opening up to The New Zealand Herald, Lea expressed her shock: “I thought, ‘What is Martin doing in New Zealand in Matakana on a bike rally when he told me he was lying in a hospital bed in Johannesburg after a mild heart attack?'” In reflection, she added, “My head is all over the place and I felt very foolish having opened my heart. I was severely manipulated during some very traumatic events in my life.”
Lea’s encounter with a catfish began two years ago when she posted on a Virgin River fan page. She received a message from someone purporting to be Martin’s agent, claiming that Martin had taken a liking to her comments and wished to speak with her, reports the Mirror US.
The pair reportedly hit it off, discussing favourite foods and shared interests. However, shortly after this, the real Martin issued a warning on his Instagram about scammers and catfish lurking on fan pages.
Despite this, the fraudulent Martin continued to deceive Lea, sharing supposed personal details and even using artificial intelligence to mimic Martin’s voice in voicemails. Over the course of the scam, Lea handed over $30,000 to the imposter for a private jet, paid $10,000 to bail him out of jail, and purchased 25 new Macbooks for a purported new business venture.
In total, she lost more than $375,000 to the fake Martin.
Martin Henderson’s representatives have been approached for comment.
Virgin River is available to stream on Netflix.