Ledger Imposter Dupes Superstars

An anonymous imposter posing as Kim Ledger, father of recently departed actor Heath Ledger, spent last week scamming superstars such as Tom Cruise and John Travolta before being discovered as a fake. He now remains at large even though his gig is up.

The fraudster began working the phones shortly after Heath Ledger died on January 22. According to the New York Post, he successfully conned a Manhattan funeral home into booking him rooms at New York’s swanky Carlyle Hotel, and also spent time on the phone with Cruise and Travolta, from whom he requested a plane ticket from Australia to Los Angeles. Travolta was in the process of arranging the airfare before the ruse ended. The deceased actor’s fiancée, Michelle Williams, was not contacted.

On Saturday, Ledger’s family, including the real Kim Ledger, and friends, such as Naomi Watts, attended an intimate 30-minute memorial service at Westwood Village Memorial Park. A funeral in Ledger’s hometown of Perth is planned for later this week.

Imposters can be shameless when it comes to identity theft, and while the Ledger hoax caused more emotional grief than financial damage, most phone fraud hits people in the wallet. When a fraudster shares some basic information about you, such as where you bank, trusting them can be tempting.

“Consumers should never answer questions for people they do not personally know, and cannot identity by telephone,” says Scott Mitic, CEO of TrustedID in Redwood City, California. Checking Caller ID, is not enough. According to Mitic, anyone with a little tech savvy can spoof their Caller ID tag to resemble a reputable institution. “Any time your bank –or any other company with whom you have relationship - calls, you should call them back at a number that you have on file for them – not a number provided by the person calling.”