Ohio Man On 'Disability' Claims AI Jelly Roll Scammed Him Of His Last Dollar With Convincing Videos

For one disabled Ohio man, what began as excitement at the chance to connect with top country music star Jelly Roll ended in heartbreak.

Ronnie Flint, who lives in the Springfield region of the state, opened up about falling victim to an AI scam that claimed he had won $50,000 for a brand-new car from the musician.

Ultimately, he lost a total of significant sum, which he claimed was all the money he had left for the month. He is now speaking out in hopes of warning others not to fall for the same scheme.

Speaking with NewsNation's local affiliate, WDTN, Ronnie Flint of Springfield, Ohio, recounted his recent encounter with an AI scam that cost him money.

Flint explained that on the day it happened, he received a Facebook message that appeared to come from country music star Jelly Roll.

As a fan of the artist, Flint was intrigued and opened the message, which claimed he had won $50,000 for a brand-new car.

"I really thought it was Jelly Roll," Flint said, explaining his initial reaction to the message.

However, when the account asked him to cover shipping to get his prizes, Flint's doubts were raised, despite the request being delivered in a video featuring someone who looked like Jelly Roll.

To convince Flint, the account sent an image of what looked like the driver's license of the country music star.

While the driver's license did have Roll's face on it, there were a number of inconsistencies that should have raised suspicion.

Most notably, the name on the license was not Jelly Roll's real name, Jason Bradley DeFord, as is typically written on identification documents. What was listed was "Jolly Roll," which in itself was another red flag, as it was a misspelling of the artist's stage name, "Jelly Roll."

Despite these glaring red flags, Flint either overlooked them or failed to recognize the signs, and the possibility that the account was legitimate deepened after receiving a second video.

"When they sent the second video where he actually said my full name, that got me," Flint further remarked. "I was like, wow, it really is Jelly Roll. He said my name."

After being convinced, Flint sent a total of $70 through Apple gift cards to the individual behind the account.

After sending the money, no arrangements to receive the alleged gifts were made by the individual.

Instead, the individual asked Flint for more money, but he told them it was all the money he had left for the rest of the month.

"I even told him that I'm on disability. You know, this is all the money that I have for the rest of the month," Flint further revealed to the outlet.

Seemingly unnerved by the situation, Flint shared the information with a family member, who warned him it was a scam.

He then took their advice, stopped communicating with the account, and filed a report with the police. Still, that didn't stop the account from sending more messages asking for money.

"They're thinking I'm going to send them another $30 on the 3rd, which ain't going to happen," Flint also recounted.

Flint's story is one of many that have made headlines about unsuspecting individuals falling for imposter scams, with some involving very large amounts of money.

For instance, a woman known as Anne also lost $855,000 to scammers who posed as Brad Pitt, per The Blast.

During the yearlong con, she chatted with the fake across different social media and messaging platforms, including WhatsApp.

At one point, the individual behind the account even sent her AI-generated selfies of the 61-year-old actor appearing to be in a hospital with cancer.

Although she was skeptical at first, she eventually wired the money to an account in Turkey after receiving an email from the scammer posing as Pitt's "doctor."

Given the rise of such scams, especially with the growing popularity of AI, the Federal Trade Commission has issued a warning to the public to remain vigilant.

"Imposter scams come in many varieties, but they all work the same way: a scammer pretends to be someone you trust to convince you to send them money," a statement read.

"And that's exactly what these celebrity imposters are trying to do," the FTC added.