Paris Hilton distances herself from bizarre Paul Walker plane stunt

Paris Hilton was left "horrified" after discovering an unknown prankster hired a banner plane brandishing her name to fly over the crash site where actor Paul Walker died.

The Fast and The Furious star was killed when the Porsche Carrera GT he was travelling in smashed into a tree and burst into flames in California on 30 November (13).

In the days following the tragedy, onlookers were stunned when a plane flew overheard carrying a 70-foot (21-metre) banner which read, "Our hearts go out to his friends and family. #17 Paris Hilton."

The bizarre stunt sparked a backlash against the hotel heiress on Twitter.com, but the star insists she had nothing to do with the message.

In a post on her own Twitter page, she writes, "I am so horrified that someone would hire a plane to fly over Paul Walker's crash site with messages from me. So disrespectful."

It's the second time this month (Dec13) hoaxers have left Hilton red-faced. Following Nelson Mandela's death last week (05Dec13), a tweet posted on her Twitter.com account read, "RIP Nelson Mandela. Your 'I Have a Dream' speech was so inspiring. An amazing man."

The star later insisted the tweet was a fake and denied confusing Mandela with Martin Luther King, Jr., who famously made the speech at a civil rights rally in 1963.