Los Angeles, CA

Diane O'Meara, whose pictures unknowingly went viral as the face of Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o's fictitious girlfriend, said she was shocked after receiving a call from reporters, informing her that her private photos had been used by fake online accounts.

During an interview with NBC's "Today", O'Meara said her pictures were used by former high school classmate Ronaiah Tuiasosopo to create an account bearing the name Lennay Kekua.

"It's very bizarre, and it's a very twisted and confusing scenario,'' O'Meara told NBC.

Kekua, purportedly a Stanford student who died in mid-September of complications due to leukemia, was originally believed to have been Te'o's longtime girlfriend.

However, Deadspin.com discovered that their love story was just an elaborate hoax started by Tuiasosopo. Te'o earlier denied having any part in the hoax, saying he was also a victim.

In December, O'Meara claims that she received an odd message on Facebook from Tuisasopo, who she had not spoken to in years.

He said he had a cousin involved in a car accident who had seen O'Meara's Facebook photos and thought she was pretty, so Tuiasosopo asked if she could take a picture for his cousin. She complied, and the photo was used as part of the hoax.

"The past five years, Tuiasosopo has literally been stalking my Facebook and stealing my photos,'' O'Meara said.

O'Meara said Tuiasosopo has called to confess and apologize. "I don't think there's anything he could say to me that would fix this," O'Meara said.

O'Meara also denied knowing Te'o.

"I've never met Manti Te'o in my entire life. I've never spoken with him. I've never exchanged words, tweets with him," said O'Meara, who works as a marketing executive in Los Angeles.

 

Diane O'Meara -- the woman whose image was used in the fake girlfriend hoax involving Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o -- is speaking out for the first time

Woman Used in Manti Te'o Hoax Pics Speaks Out

 

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