American woman on vacation in Milan issues stark warning about sneaky SCAM Italian locals are using to prey on tourists in a bid to rob them
- Hannah Chody, 31, heiress to the Garrett Popcorn fortune, travels frequently
- She opened up about a scary encounter she'd had in Milan with her husband
- READ MORE: Traveler reveals the four main scams for solo tourists
A fashion and lifestyle influencer has taken to TikTok to warn others of a scam she encountered while on vacation in Milan.
Hannah Chody, 31, heiress to the Garrett Popcorn fortune, had a close call on a walk home from dinner with her husband, investor Chad Milburn, in the fashionable Italian city.
'I don't know if anyone in Milan has experienced this,' she began.
'This guy approached my husband, and kept saying, "scarpa, scarpa, scarpa," which is shoes in Italian.
'And I was like looking at my husband's shoes, like, "What is going on?" And I was like, "No, let's keep going."
Hannah Chody, 31, heiress to the Garrett Popcorn fortune, had a close call on a walk home from dinner with her husband, investor Chad Milburn, in the fashionable Italian city
Out of no where, a group of men began calling out the Italian word for 'shoes' before one of them seemingly made a grab for Chad's wristwatch
'Because Chad didn't know what scarpa meant,' she continued.
'This guy, all of the sudden, just starts hounding us, harassing us.'
At that point, Hannah says the man went to grab Chad's hand, as if trying to get to his watch - which, luckily, was covered by his suit jacket.
After a few moments, other people began to approach them and the guys 'dispersed,' she went on.
In the aftermath, Hannah and Chad discussed the incident - and Chad realized he'd had something similar happen to him before the pandemic.
Five years ago, in Milan, in the same neighborhood, a man had come up to Chad and started making fun of his shoes, which had just been 'normal Gucci loafers,' Hannah said.
'We think it's like a tactic of pickpocketers, or guys trying to rob you.
'Because what do you do? If someone comments on your shoes, the first thing is you do is look down at your shoes, and you're not looking at anything else.
Chad recalled a similar encounter he'd had in Milan five years prior - when he had also encountered a sketchy group of men trying to draw attention to his shoes (stock image)
Hannah, who wed her husband Chad in Italy in July 2022, emphasized that she almost always feels 'safe' in Milan - but advised viewers to remain 'super aware' of their surroundings
She emphasized that they both were 'fine' - but it was very 'strange and shady, and this guy definitely had some motive, he just got interrupted,' she went on.
'However, I will just say, you know, I feel very very safe in Milan, 99 per cent of the time,' she stressed.
'But, be super aware of your surroundings. If anyone's trying to distract you, I think that's just like the biggest red flag.'
Hannah and her husband are no strangers to Italian culture, having made regular trips to the European country for years - even tying the knot in a lavish ceremony held in Lake Como back in July 2022.
In the two years since, the influencer has become a bona fide star on TikTok, where she regularly shares beauty and fashion hacks, while also documenting her jet-set lifestyle.
Last week, Hannah revealed that she was jetting off on a three-week European vacation while documenting her packing process - kicking off her trip in Milan before heading on to the Dolomites.
