Former WWE Tough Enough winner Maven Huffman just shut down a scammer pretending to be him—and he did it with style, a hidden camera, and a big donation to charity.
In a video posted to his YouTube channel, Maven exposed an individual impersonating him in the comment sections of his videos. The scammer was directing unsuspecting fans to a WhatsApp number, pretending to be the real Maven in order to swindle money from them.
Rather than ignore the issue, Maven decided to fight back by staging a sting operation. He posed as a gullible fan and reached out to the number, documenting every part of the exchange.
To test the impersonator, Maven deliberately mentioned that he’d been following his career since the first season of Tough Enough in 2003—a fake detail, since Maven actually won the show in 2001. The scammer didn’t catch the error and responded with poor grammar, another red flag in the exchange.
Soon, the scammer revealed their goal: they offered Maven a fake VIP “fan card,” but only after requesting a $500 Apple gift card in return. Within 22 minutes of conversation, the fraud was asking for payment—and that’s when Maven flipped the script.
Instead of sending gift card photos, Maven sent a video of himself, calling out the scammer directly. He pointed to his camera gear and told them their scam was over. He didn’t stop there—he followed up with several direct messages, revealing his identity and telling the impersonator exactly what was going to happen next.
Maven announced that instead of falling for the scam, he’d donate $500 to Diva for a Day, a charity that gives spa and wellness experiences to women fighting cancer.
He ended the exchange with a simple message to the scammer: their little con was over, and the real Maven was back in control.
Outside of YouTube, Maven has also returned to in-ring action on the independent circuit, most recently wrestling for Create A Pro Wrestling in May 2024. While his focus has shifted to storytelling and content creation, this incident shows Maven hasn’t lost his edge—or his sense of purpose.
Would you have handled the scammer the same way Maven did? Please share your thoughts and feedback in the comment section below.