Country singer Brad Paisley and his wife, actress Kimberly Williams were recently the victims of an online cancer hoax, according to the Huffington Post.
The couple gave an interview on "Nightline" where they discussed being conned by Carrie Kahler, a woman who claimed that her daughter, Claire, was dying from pediatric cancer.
The hoax began when Kahler said Claire had begged her to get in touch with Williams, who said the story hit home for her. Williams and Paisley are both long supporters of St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital.
Williams communicated with Kahler for 10 days via text, phone calls and email. She also received photographs of the girl, as well as journal entries and songs recorded for her by Claire. Paisley also sang her "Amazing Grace" over the phone. Then Kahler informed the couple that Claire had died.
"She said, 'Oh, don't. Just send a donation to your local children's hospital," Paisley told ABC about Kahler's response to them wanting to send flowers. "I mean I had, like, a physical reaction.
"Every red flag went up and I remember just looking at people around me," Paisley recalled. "'Who is it? How many people were involved in this scam and are they right here, are they watching me right now?'
"This person was crazy," Paisley concluded.
Paisley and Williams aren't the first celebrities to be fooled by this type of scam. Kate Gosselin and the band Little Big Town have both been on the receiving end as well.
Celebrities seem to be easy targets as in addition to this hoax, there are frequently false reports that celebrities have died. Recent victims of those hoaxes include Megan Hilty, Michael J. Fox, Katy Perry, Nicole Kidman, Paris Hilton and David Beckham.
There have also been scams where people call in about a shooting when a celebrity isn't home, causing the police to show up with SWAT teams. Victims of that scam have included Anderson Cooper and Miley Cyrus.
"Nightline" interview with Kimberly Williams and Brad Paisley.
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