Revealed: How married Criminal Minds star Thomas Gibson 'was duped into TWO YEAR fake online relationship by catfisher'

Actor 'estranged from wife at time of relationship'

Television star Thomas Gibson was reportedly recently duped into a fake online relationship, but he wasn't cheating on his wife.

The 51-year-old actor was reportedly the victim of a catfisher who introduced herself on Twitter and posed as a porn star to entice him into a two-year online relationship.

Gibson, who portrays an FBI criminal behavior analyst on Criminal Minds, even sent the woman an embarrassing video recorded in a hot tub.

Estranged couple: Thomas Gibson, shown in November 2012, was separated from his wife when he started an online relationship with a catfisher

Gibson and his wife Christine have been estranged for about two and a half years, about six months before the fake fling started, according to a report on Tuesday in TMZ .

The estranged couple still live together for the sake of their three children, sources said.

The woman who tricked Gibson used a photo of a scantily clad woman to introduce herself and said she was a big fan.

Estranged couple: Thomas and his wife Christine, shown in 1999 at a Los Angeles film premiere, have been estranged for more than two years

She exchanged multiple explicit photos and videos with Gibson using images taken from various pornographic websites.



Gibson shot the hot tub video in late December 2012 in Utah.



The woman told TMZ everything was going well until a few months ago when she got a letter from Gibson's lawyers demanding she cease contact because Gibson had discovered her pictures were fake.

Criminal analyst: Gibson, shown in center in a February episode of Criminal Minds, has been with the show since its start in 2005

Hit show: Criminal Minds, shown with 2011 season seven cast members, has been renewed by CBS for a ninth season

The woman said she hasn't heard from Gibson since.

Gibson on Criminal Minds portrays Aaron 'Hotch' Hotchner, a supervisory special agent within the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit.

Gibson has been with the show since its pilot episode in September 2005.

He previously portrayed Greg Montgomery on the ABC sitcom Dharma & Greg.