Fantasist Samantha Azzopardi arrested on High St, Northcote

The 35-year-old serial fantasist who has in the past posed as a nanny, nurse and an American actress is behind bars after alleged deceptions in Dandenong, Brighton and Reservoir.

Samantha Azzopardi has been remanded to appear at Heidelberg Magistrates’ Court on November 1. Picture: Dylan Coker

Internationally renowned serial fantasist Samantha Azzopardi is behind bars in Melbourne.

Azzopardi was arrested on High St, Northcote, on October 10 and charged with obtaining financial advantage by deception.

The 35-year-old, who has made headlines across Australia, in Ireland and Canada, was detained over a series of alleged deceptions in Dandenong, Brighton and Reservoir.

They happened between August 25 and October 9, police allege.

Samantha Azzopardi has made headlines in Australia, Ireland and Canada.

The exact nature of the allegations is not known.

A Victoria Police statement said Azzopardi had been remanded to appear at Heidelberg Magistrates’ Court on November 1, 2023.

Azzopardi first came to police attention 16 years ago.

Over the years, she has had more than 40 aliases, posing as a nanny, nurse and even American actress Dakota Johnson and the daughter of Princess Madeleine of Sweden.

She also once pretended to be a talent scout called Coco, promising to help a Melbourne couple’s daughter land a role on the Australian version of the hit US TV show ‘Punk’d’.

Samantha Azzopardi first came to police attention 16 years ago.

She once pretended to be a talent scout called Coco.

While in Dublin, Ireland, in 2013, she claimed to be a teenage victim of child-sex trafficking from eastern Europe.

In 2014, Azzopardi walked into a health centre in Calgary, Canada, giving her name as Aurora Hepburn and claiming she was the victim of a sexual assault and abduction.