SCAMMERS said they were Brad Pitt on an online dating site in a desperate bid to get money. 

Two people reported to Lymington police the romance scams, with one claiming to have been approached by the Hollywood star. 

“A celebrity worth millions does not need or want your money, so please keep your money yours,” Lymington’s police officers said. 

They added: “Please be mindful of who you are talking to and what internet sites you are joining up to. Never hand money over to someone you have never met.” 

More than £3.8 million was reported as stolen from Santander UK customers in romance scams in the past six months, marking a 27 per cent jump compared with the previous half-year period. 

Customers aged 18 to 93 were affected, the bank said, with the average loss to romance fraudsters was £4,500. 

Santander customers lost £6,826,748 to romance scams in the 12 months running from August 2023 to August 2024. 

Peter Staffell, a behavioural expert at Santander UK, said: “Scammers are experts at presenting themselves as someone you can trust, someone who ‘gets’ you. 

“They play the long game, building a relationship before executing on their scam and, as our research shows, it’s a natural instinct for many of us to willingly lend a financial hand to someone who we have formed an emotional bond with. 

“Then they’ve gone. The scam is complete, and the impact extends far beyond the financial losses, leaving emotional scars and often people feeling more isolated than before. 

“You can take control though, a few simple checks when you first start to speak to someone, and before your emotions take hold, can reveal a lot about the person you’re speaking to and save heartache further down the line.” 

Here are some tips from Santander to stay protected from romance and friendship scams: 

1. Try to remove emotion from your decision-making. Be really careful if you are lending or giving someone money. No matter how urgent their reason might seem, it is important you think it through. Consider discussing it with a trusted friend or family member first. 

2. Pictures can be edited and fake profiles can easily be made. Performing a reverse image search online can show whether the photos have been taken from another website or social media platform. 

3. It could be a red flag if the person you have been talking to online will not video call or meet you in person. Fraudsters will make excuses about why this cannot happen or change plans to do so at the last minute. 

4. Never send money or give card details, online account details, or copies of important personal documents to anyone you have only met online.