A woman, deceived into believing she was engaged in a secret affair with Stranger Things star, Dacre Montgomery, recently opened up about how she transferred around $10,000 to the fraudster and ended her marriage to pursue this fictitious relationship.
McKala, a single mother from Kentucky, was in a “very toxic” marriage when she initially engaged in a conversation with an unfamiliar individual online more than a year ago.
As an aspiring actress and filmmaker, McKala became a member of an online artists' forum to nurture her artistic inclinations – something she believed her husband didn't support – and posted about her enthusiasm for connecting with fellow filmmakers, actively seeking chances for innovative partnerships.
Replying to her post, McKala received a message from someone claiming to be one of her favorite actors - none other than Montgomery, renowned for portraying the hunk Billy Hargrove in the Netflix hit show, Stranger Things.
"I’m suspicious from the get-go, until he starts doing things that make me believe he is who he is," she told Catfished, the popular YouTube series McKala called for help after sensing something was off.
Recently, a Kentucky resident shared being deceived by someone impersonating Stranger Things' Dacre Montgomery
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
At the time, she claimed to be in a "very toxic” relationship
Image credits: Catfished
The actual Dacre has been romantically involved with his model girlfriend, Liv Pollock, for a better part of a decade. However, the individual McKala conversed with opened up about their relationship troubles.
"He was venting to me after a few months about his partner, saying she is very controlling of him. He doesn't get to do the things he wants to do. She's always there. She's always got to supervise," she recalled. "I kind of empathize with that because my ex-husband was that way."
Upon inspecting the actor's Instagram profile, McKala observed a lack of content related to his girlfriend, which only strengthened her illusion.
After some time, the person posing as Dacre confessed to falling for McKala and proposed a relationship with her. "He was like, 'But you gotta keep it quiet because, you know, I'm still with Liv'," she explained.
According to McKala, Dacre Montgomery, who's known for playing Billy in Netflix's Stranger Things, is one of her favorite actors
Image credits: Catfished
The catfishing began after McKala took to Reddit to seek fellow filmmakers a year ago
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
After hitting it off with a person claiming to be Dacre, McKala let her guard down
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
Shortly after, the fake Montgomery proposed an ultimatum to McKala. "He said it's either your husband, or it's me," she said.
"I said, 'Look, there's no competition. You treat me better.'" Within a couple of months, McKala's husband was no longer in the picture.
The actor she believed to be flirting with continued making requests, alleging his girlfriend's manipulation of his bank accounts, and seeking monetary aid from McKala.
Blinded by love, she complied, sending him gift cards worth $100 and $200 each. Assessing the total amount she had provided, McKala discovered it had accumulated to approximately $10,000. Soon after, she called the Catfished team for help.
Eventually, the fake Montgomery proposed taking the next step
Image credits: Catfished
Although, the touching offer was not without strings attached
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
After inspecting the actor's socials, the impersonator's lies aligned with Dacre's social media presence
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
Blinded by love, McKala started sending him gift cards worth $100 and $200 each
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
Upon investigation, it was determined that the actor in question earned $150,000 for each episode of Stranger Things. Additionally, there was no substantiated evidence suggesting a breakup between Dacre and Liv.
Further investigation revealed that the check supposedly sent by the imposter to McKala was counterfeit, and it exhibited an identical signature to hundreds of other checks found online.
"Due to the fact that this guy sent you so many things that are from so many different places all over the internet, we've come to the conclusion that you're speaking to what's known as a romance scammer," the Catfished team explained.
"He's done research on you, and he's basically morphing himself into this person that you want him to be, and also attaching Dacre Montgomery's photos to them."
After going through the whole thing with the Catfished team, she was informed that this relationship was nothing but smoke and mirrors
Image credits: Catfished
Even the check supposedly sent by the imposter to McKala was fake
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
Image credits: Catfished
You can watch the whole story provided by the Catfished team below
Image credits: Catfished
McKala, who currently lives with her 7-year-old daughter, was shocked to find out her worst fears came true. Nevertheless, she held onto a sense of gratitude for finally attaining clarity regarding what was genuine and what was fabricated.
"Love makes you do crazy, stupid, irrational things," she said, adding that, "if you're someone like me, you're afraid of abandonment and you're a real big people pleaser and you're very co-dependent... These scammers, they just kind of come in and they leech off that."
Some understood McKala's pain, although the majority couldn't believe that people still fall for this
