Maria believed she was in a romance with a Dubai prince, drawn in by his charming smile and affectionate messages during live video calls. In reality, the man was an AI deepfake, making her another victim of an increasingly sophisticated online romance scam.
The case highlights how fraudsters impersonating Dubai’s real-life Crown Prince, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum—popularly known as Fazza—build emotional relationships online before defrauding victims. Researchers say some of these operations have been linked to criminal networks in Nigeria, reports AFP.
Maria first encountered the scammer on a dating site before moving the conversation to a messaging app, where she was inundated with romantic messages from the supposed royal.
“He kept on messaging me even when I was sleeping,” the Filipino domestic worker told AFP, requesting anonymity.
“It felt like there was a love spell that connected our minds.”
In a recorded WhatsApp video call seen by AFP, the figure appearing as the prince looked convincing and lifelike, with synchronised lip movements—but a mismatched voice. “Hello beloved,” the voice said. “I really appreciate your love and support.”
Initially convinced by the deception, Maria eventually lost a year’s savings after being persuaded to transfer 100,000 pesos ($1,625) for what was described as a marriage certificate and a “royal membership card”, allegedly required to secure a job in Dubai.
Her suspicions were raised when she was later asked for an additional 60,000 pesos ($974) for a hotel booking to facilitate a meeting. On closer inspection of the Facebook account—later taken down—she discovered it was linked to Nigeria.
She ended all contact with a final message: “Go to hell, scammer.”
“Many people told me it’s good I didn’t go crazy after this experience,” she said.
The scam is part of a wider network of so-called “fake Dubai prince” frauds that target both emotions and finances.
Scammers exploit Sheikh Hamdan’s global popularity, including his millions of social media followers, and often reuse his poetry, images and likeness to appear authentic. AFP identified multiple Facebook groups impersonating the royal, some with thousands of followers, directing users to WhatsApp or Telegram chats with the “prince”.
The pages often share manipulated but highly realistic images, including fabricated romantic scenes and messages such as: “Sweetheart can I get a ‘love you’ on WhatsApp?”
While some users warn others in the comments, many still respond with heart and blowing-kiss emojis, showing how convincing the deception can be.
Awareness campaigns have since emerged, including social media pages warning users not to fall for impersonation scams. A Change.org petition titled “Stop Fazza Scam” has also called for stronger action against fraudsters using the prince’s identity to demand money under false pretences.
It said victims are often asked to transfer funds via international banks or cryptocurrency, making recovery difficult.
Dubai authorities did not respond to AFP’s request for comment.
The phenomenon is not isolated. Last year, French authorities investigated scammers posing as actor Brad Pitt who allegedly defrauded a woman of €830,000 ($945,000).
According to the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, consumers worldwide lost an estimated $442 billion to scams last year, including romance fraud.
Experts warn that AI is accelerating the threat. It is not yet clear which tools were used in Maria’s case, but rapid advances in face-swapping and motion-synthesis technologies are making real-time video deepfakes increasingly convincing.
“The technology is improving rapidly, and it is likely that soon real-time video deepfakes will become better and better,” said Cornell University’s David Rand.
“Once this happens, it becomes fundamentally impossible to tell whether any not-in-person conversation is real.”
