A 64-year-old Pennsylvania man reportedly lost more than $42,000 after falling victim to a scammer who allegedly posed as WWE star Rhea Ripley.
According to Pennsylvania State Police, an unknown person or group impersonated Ripley and convinced the man to hand over $42,700. The incident reportedly took place in March 2026, although authorities only disclosed details of the case in September.
Very little information is currently available about how the scammer contacted the victim or what was said to convince him to send such a large amount of money. Local authorities have also said that the victim has refused to cooperate with the investigation, making it difficult to determine exactly how the scheme unfolded.
A public information officer told local outlet WPXI that the victim had “refused to cooperate” with investigators. So far, no arrests have been made, and there has been no indication that Ripley had any involvement in the incident.
The WWE star has also not publicly commented on the case.
Unfortunately, Ripley is far from the only WWE personality whose identity has been used by scammers targeting fans.
In 2024, 74-year-old Alfred Mancinelli reportedly lost nearly $1 million after being targeted by someone pretending to be WWE star Alexa Bliss. The money allegedly included his retirement savings as well as funds he had put aside for his granddaughter’s college education.
Other WWE stars have also warned fans about similar schemes. Liv Morgan previously spoke out after learning about fake accounts and emails being used to impersonate her and ask fans for money.
“Guys I’ve been sent so many emails of horror stories about people making fake accounts and emails pretending to be me & asking for huge amounts of money,” Morgan wrote in 2022.
“This really makes me so sad. Please don’t use my name to con people out of their hard earned money.”
Morgan’s warnings came after several fans were reportedly targeted by people using her identity. In one case, a 54-year-old Vancouver man, Roger Winsel, believed he had been in an online relationship with the real Morgan for months.
He had reportedly exchanged messages and photos with the account and even bought a $1,200 engagement ring before investigators determined that the profile was being operated from Lagos, Nigeria. Winsel also admitted to previously sending money to several other fake Liv Morgan accounts.
