A Brazilian bricklayer, Edimar Rocha Martins, travelled around 2,000 kilometres by bus from Imperatriz to Belo Horizonte after becoming convinced by an online persona named “Fazendeira,” an AI-generated woman who promised to fund his trip and invite him to live on a farm. Martins had reportedly been communicating with the account since 2020, though the operator says the character was created in 2025 and denies private messages with him.
A video linked to the account showed the offer of support and a place to live, prompting Martins to sell his possessions to fund the journey. On arriving in Belo Horizonte, he could not locate the supposed correspondent and sought help from a local radio station, which explained the character was AI-generated.
The account’s administrator later posted a message via the AI character’s TikTok account denying any scam, claiming the profile was created to drive engagement and affiliate sales, and that the character never spoke directly to Martins. The operator maintained uncertainty about whether others had reused the persona’s content on other accounts. Police said they could not determine if a crime had occurred at that stage.
The incident is placed alongside other similar cases in June and August, where older men travelled long distances to meet a purported farmwoman linked to the same online narrative; while it is not clear whether these cases involved AI generation, the financial and emotional costs—selling possessions, travel, and being stranded—are real. The piece also highlights the broader risk of parasocial bonds with AI-driven content and advocates caution and verification before sending money or travelling.