"When Elon Musk Wants Your Inheritance"

John Cairns, 61, had just said goodbye to his dear dad - and hello to a £3,250 hole in his bank account, thanks to a deepfake Elon Musk and some very enthusiastic "investment advisors."

It started innocently enough: a video on Facebook, Elon’s familiar face beaming, inviting everyone to toss £250 into a "new AI trading platform." If you can't trust a pixelated tech billionaire on Facebook, who can you trust?

John decided to dip his toes into the future of finance. He put in £250, and just like that, was £82 richer! (At least, on paper.) Naturally, he thought: "I am a financial genius." So he poured in another £1,490, then another £1,510 - because when you’re on a winning streak, doubling down is practically mandatory.

His "account manager," possibly dialing in from a broom cupboard somewhere, kept the dream alive - until John asked to cash out. Then, the legendary art of "being fobbed off" began.

Sadly, John's daughter soon pointed out the obvious: maybe that wasn't the Elon Musk FaceTiming Dad from Huddersfield.

Now, lawyers are on the case, trying to wrestle John's money back from the clutches of the AI-powered Wild West. Meanwhile, the rest of us get to learn a very 2025 lesson: grief is temporary, but screenshots are forever.

As solicitor Fiona Bresnen put it (probably with a weary sigh): "It’s getting harder and harder to tell what's real these days."

Good thing we at SCAMAIZER are here to laugh (and cry) along the way.