Prankster cashing in on Ledger's death to call Hollywood A-listers

Sydney, Jan 29 : An opportunistic prankster is using Heath Ledger's death to get in touch with Hollywood A-listers who were close to the late actor.

Stars like Christian Bale, Halle Berry and Mel Gibson have been targeted by a man claiming to be Ledger's grieving father Kim Ledger.

The sick prankster has been in touch with the Hollywood stars' publicists, asking for personal anecdotes about his 'son.'

However, minders acting for several devastated stars fooled by the conman raised the alarm after questioning why Ledger's Perth-based parents would be calling from a British mobile phone number.

It was then revealed that the fraudster has been using the Ledger tragedy to build up a list of personal numbers for the stars.

Insiders claim that the celebs, who are still shocked with Ledger's unexpected death on Jan 22, and were more than willing to help his so-called father, were left stunned when the scam was exposed.

"They're already hurting, but this was just a kick in the guts," News.com.au quoted an insider, as saying.

"The call came out of the blue on Saturday when the news of (Heath's) death was just sinking in. Everyone was feeling raw, now this. It's just a low act," the insider added.

ANI