Celebrity Scams

 

I've been intrigued by celebrities who message me. I probably shouldn't, but I enjoy playing along with what I'm convinced is a scam.

The first came from (allegedly) Urs of Il Divo last February. I follow the group so I was a bit surprised to get this message.

UB: Hello fan

 

Me:  How many people are you messaging?

UB: Why do you ask?

Me: I'm curious. (I didn't believe it was him.)

UB: This is official private account I created to reach out with some of my amazing fans who has been supporting me and it’s unknown to my management.

By the way I hope you are not a journalist?

I told him I had been a financial journalist. I asked him what dialect was his mother tongue. He's Swiss German. I'm Swiss. I wanted to see if he would know just on the tiny, tiny, tiny chance he was real. I wrote him in high German and he replied in the same. Whomever he was could have used an internet translator.

He said he had something to tell me.

I didn't answer, he must have gone onto someone easier to scam.

In August I received another message from Urs (allegedly) asking me if he could ask me a question. He asked if I would keep our conversations confidential. And he wanted contact info.

I again asked to prove he was the real Urs.

He replied that the nature of his career for security reason he'd like us to keep in touch on somewhere more confidential.

I refused to give my contacts. 

He disappeared for good...on to greener pastures, I assume. However, I cannot imagine what a scammer hopes to get from his.

A couple of days ago I received a message from Sebasrien Izambard, also of Il Divo. I mentioned that Urs had contacted me earlier and he said they had reported fake Il Divo contacts with fans to the FBI. We exchanged a couple more emails when again I asked for verification of whom he really was. When I started writing in French, he too disappeared.

A third contact was from writer John Irving. We had both lived in Exeter, NH. I had done my masters thesis on repeated symbolism in his work. Still it made no sense he would contact me even writer to writer. He too disappeared when I wanted verification.

Too bad these contacts aren't real. Both Sebestian's and John's messages have disappeared from my message list. Urs's is still there. I'd love to talk to John about his writing. It will never be. 

I do have trouble imagining what the next step of the scam might be.

On the other hand, as a writer, I would see this as the seed for a great murder mystery. Any writer out there is welcome to the plot as I have too much I'm working on to develop it.