Mum 'in relationship with George Ezra' almost conned out of £5,000 by catfish
18.01.2023 - 08:03
/ dailyrecord.co.uk
A mum who thought she was in a relationship with George Ezra was almost conned out of thousands of pounds.
Helen appeared on This Morning and detailed her horrifying account of catfishing to hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield. The 51-year-old appeared on the ITV talk show and revealed an innocent post on the musician's Facebook page led to a series of lies and betrayal with the impostor asking her for £5,000.
Taking to social media, the mother-of-three began complimenting the 29-year-old’s talent and ability to connect with listeners before she received a friend request from an account named George Ezra. The account then messaged Helen, and soon the pair were exchanged upwards of 40 messages a day and the imposter even proposed to her.
Helen, who has been divorced for eight years, was saved from sending over £5,000 after her daughter grew suspicious of the relationship and took the story to Catfish UK.
Holly, 41, asked if it was ‘weird’ she hadn’t spoken to ‘George’ on the phone, with Helen saying she once tried to call him but he blocked it, saying he was ‘in the studio all day.’ She added that she didn't find it odd as the two lived very busy lives.
The fraudster even warned her against telling anyone about their messaging 'for press reasons'. The George impersonator even wanted Helen to come off social media entirely and change her email address.
When it came to arranging a meeting, 'George' said to avoid suspicion it would have to be through an official channel like a meet and greet in a bid to extort money from Helen.
She said: "He said he wanted to meet me and that the only way to do it without arousing suspicion for the press was to do it through an official channel of a meet and greet, which would cost