Scammer impersonating American actor who plays Jesus Christ targets Quebec victims

IMAGE DISTRIBUTED FOR THE CHOSEN - Jonathan Roumie who portrays Jesus on The Chosen attends the theatrical premiere of Season 3, Episodes One and Two during a charity fundraiser to benefit the Salvation Army at the historic Fox Theater on Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022 in Atlanta. (John Amis/Invision or The Chosen/AP Images)

A local church in Quebec City is warning the public about a scammer impersonating an American actor who portrays Jesus Christ in the popular series The Chosen and using the name of the church’s archbishop to extract large sums of money from victims.

In an Aug. 28 Facebook post, the Église catholique de Québec said the fraudster was posing as actor Jonathan Roumie and claiming to be a close friend of its Archbishop, Cardinal Gérald Cyprien Lacroix, to gain victims’ trust and extort large sums of money from them.

As part of the scam, the fraudster allegedly persuades victims to join a fan club, promises exclusive meetings, and collects money for fake charities.

The church indicated the fraudster was active in the Capitale-Nationale region.

“We would like to confirm that this is a scam. Cardinal Lacroix does not personally know Jonathan Roumie. The actor himself has issued a warning about these scammers,” the church said on Facebook.

“Let’s spread the word about staying vigilant and look out for one another to support those who have fallen victim to scams, especially our seniors and other vulnerable individuals.”

In June, Roumie warned his fans that scammers were impersonating him and selling fake meet-and-greets and private chats.

The actor stressed that he never direct messages fans or members of the public, nor does his team.

“We will never charge money for a ‘fan club,’” he noted on Facebook, adding that he has only one official Instagram account and that his other platforms are listed in his Linktree and identifiable by a verification checkmark.

He also directed victims who had been targeted to report the scam to their financial institutions as well as the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The Quebec City police (SPVQ) said they were aware of media reports about the scam but did not provide further information, referring questions back to the church.