While everyone is still reeling over former Sunny Side Up actor Laurence Pang losing S$35K in a love scam, another local celeb has found herself involved in the same scam.
Former Star Search 2019 finalist Vanessa Ho shared on Instagram that her pictures were used by the scammer to cheat Laurence.
The 25-year-old influencer said a friend had highlighted how the images of the scammer used in Mothership’s Instagram Reel on the love scam resembled hers.
According to Vanessa, one photo was taken from a mattress advertisement she did in May 2023. Another was from a lunch at a Japanese restaurant she posted in November 2023.
Accusing the news site of editing her pictures for their story, the NUS alum later admitted on her Instagram Stories that Mothership wouldn’t have known better and apologised for her outburst.
8days.sg has reached out to Vanessa but has not received a reply as of press time.
Netizens came out in droves, many commenting how they were confused over the allegations.
While some sympathised with Vanessa and offered words of encouragement, others suggested she should focus on going after the scammer who had edited her pictures.
A netizen sarcastically commented that Vanessa should be thankful for being given free publicity.
Of course, Vanessa hit back and said, “Some people say bad publicity is better [than] no publicity, but as someone with a day job where social media is a side gig, and I like to maintain a certain image, I don’t think I appreciate being associated with a love scammer.”
At Star Search 2019, Vanessa was awarded the Samsung Galaxy Breakthrough Award, receiving S$10K in cash and a trip to Korea.
According to an interview with zula.sg, she turned down a contract to be a full-time actress then and went into Financial Technology (Fintech).
Vanessa is now a co-founder and investment lead of Fintech Nation, a not-for-profit grassroots organisation that serves as an investment platform and think tank.