A WOMAN has told of how she was conned out of £500,000 by a scammer posing as Scottish actor Gerard Butler.
Appearing on Tuesday's broadcast of This Morning with Holly and Phil, Anne Larkin explained how she was tricked into handing over the money by a fraudster after losing her partner.
The scammer, pretending to be Gerard Butler, reached out over Facebook messanger and encouraged Larkin to part with her money by claiming he was building a compound for homeless children and families, which included a school.
The largest lump sum sent by Larkin was £20,000.
"They were building houses, they were building a hospital, they were other outbuildings being built," Anne said.
In response, Phil asked "Did he do it through a foundation? Did he say he had a charitable foundation?"
"He just sent the plans of what was being built, how it was being built, and were building funds to get it all built in one go rather than sections," Anne replied.
This was not the only time Larkin was targeted, with another fraudster named 'Clinton' claiming he has lost his wife and daughter in a car crash.
Reflecting on the ordeal, Anne said: "I was stupid. I was all these bad words, but you need to think about how you would cope if you were going through what I was going through."
The real Gerard Butler warned fans back in 2019 to be wary of scammers posing as him on social media.
In a statement, he said: "Hi Everyone – this is a list of my official and only social media accounts,’ he shared. ‘If anyone reaches out to you on the internet saying they are me by email or otherwise, ignore them.
"I do not have any personal accounts. You will only hear from me right here."
