Cybercriminals scam Catholics with AI-generated video of amputee priest

Cybercriminals in Brazil used artificial intelligence to create a fraudulent video of a priest with both legs amputated to solicit urgent donations for prosthetics. The scam targeted Catholics through a Facebook page called Short Walk, which was created on August 18, 2026.

The video featured a fake priest named Father Mateus, along with fictional characters including a 72-year-old woman named Doña Lourdes and a 14-year-old altar server named Enzo. The campaign claimed that the prosthetics had to be purchased within four months to prevent permanent muscle atrophy in the thighs.

Reginaldo Jesus Flor, 80, identified the scam after noticing unnatural lip-syncing in the video. His son, journalist and theologian Felipe Zangari, helped confirm the errors. They traced the donation link to a corporate account in Florianópolis registered to Gestão Solidar Digital LTDA. Investigators found that the activity was linked to the identification documents of a retiree from Goiás who did not know her data was being used.