Imposter 49ers Player Dupes Women in $1.3 Million Romance Scam

Federal prosecutors have brought serious allegations against Daejon Love, accusing him of defrauding over two dozen women out of $1.3 million by pretending to be a wide receiver for the San Francisco 49ers.

Referring to his actions simply as impersonation might actually downplay the extent of his elaborate scheme.

At 35 years old, Love is accused of meticulously crafting a fictional NFL career. He allegedly built this illusion using costumes, social media performances, fictitious financial successes, and an impressive collection of 49ers gear that could rival a team store.

Investigators claim that over more than four years, Love successfully transitioned online from an everyday individual with no NFL experience to a purported professional athlete boasting a millionaire’s lifestyle and insider investment knowledge.

On August 24, law enforcement apprehended Love and Taylor Jamie Chan, 18, at the Boise Airport. Both face charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud. Authorities have identified 26 victims across the states of California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, with suspicions that more may exist.

What prosecutors allege happened behind that headline is far more bizarre.

Love didn’t merely wear a 49ers T-shirt, put on a replica helmet and hope nobody checked the roster. He allegedly created what amounted to his own NFL multimedia department.

In one video obtained by OutKick from late 2024, Love appeared to sign what he represented as an NFL contract.

Asked who he was signing with, Love responded: “Niners, you already know, Niner gang.”

In the video, he says he wears No. 7, famously worn by Colin Kaepernick and by current 49ers wide receiver DeMarcus Robinson. 

According to an FBI affidavit, Love filmed himself supposedly signing an employment contract with the 49ers while claiming he would play wide receiver.

Representatives for both the NFL and the 49ers said he had never worked for either.

But the videos and props only became increasingly more elaborate.

Investigators reportedly traced more than $1,160 in purchases to Green Gridiron, a seller of custom football helmets. Love trained wearing 49ers gear and a helmet, posted football workouts and allegedly used authentic-looking NFL imagery to make the fantasy believable, including while working out on a beach. 

He even had a personalized 49ers-themed cake made that featured a No. 7 jersey with his name on it.

Love posted an Instagram Story dubbed “NFL Journey,” holding a 49ers helmet while explaining his supposed path into professional football. At one point, he displayed a Google result identifying “Daejon Love” as a San Francisco wide receiver.

“That’s Google. That’s not me, that’s Google,” he told viewers.

There was just one rather obvious problem: Nobody could actually watch him play football.

Love reportedly solved that one by raising an injured finger to the camera and claiming he couldn’t play because he was hurt. For a franchise whose injury reports have sometimes felt longer than its depth chart, another sidelined 49er might not have sounded particularly unusual to someone casually following the NFL.

According to information surrounding the case, Love also repurposed footage originating from actual NFL players, including material depicting the 49ers locker room and Super Bowl field, helping make his online world look like somewhere only an NFL player could have access.

Investigators say his fabricated lifestyle extended well beyond football.

Love allegedly purchased followers, likes and views to inflate his social-media credibility and bought realistic-looking prop currency. He recorded videos of him signing autographs to non-existent fans of screenshots of previous videos of him working out in 49ers gear. He portrayed himself as being sponsored by Fabletics and, according to one person who encountered him, rented expensive Airbnbs that he passed off as his own homes, filled them with empty Louis Vuitton luggage and even had a bodyguard pat down visitors.

It was NFL cosplay with a high production value.

One woman’s encounter captured the absurdity perfectly. She reportedly spotted Love training on a beach wearing his 49ers helmet and took a photograph with him. She sent it to her grandson who followed the Niners.

The grandson didn’t recognize him and suggested she go back and ask his name.

Too late.

He left in a Honda Civic, she said.

Federal prosecutors say Love used dating websites like Hinge, Bumble and Tinder, where he created fake profiles and used various names pretending to be an NFL player — or even sometimes a wealthy Swiss real estate developer. 

Love would allegedly form romantic relationships with the victims before having Chan pose as Love’s financial adviser or business manager. The pair would then use fake investment accounts, staged FaceTime calls and fabricated balances to convince women that Love possessed millions of dollars. In January 2024, investigators say Love asked Chan for a screenshot showing a $3.4 million account; another purported stock account was made to appear worth $11 million.

Love allegedly showed victims fake statements — including documents bearing the words “World Bank” — before pitching nonexistent investments. World Bank is not even an actual commercial bank, but instead, according to the United Nations website: 

“The World Bank focuses on poverty reduction and the improvement of living standards worldwide by providing low-interest loans, interest-free credit, and grants.”

And Chan’s age makes the arrangement even stranger.

Federal authorities identify him as 18 today, yet prosecutors say the scheme began in February 2022. That timeline would make Chan approximately 13 or 14 when the alleged operation started. In one of the earliest episodes described by investigators, Love allegedly directed a woman he had recently met online to invest $10,000 through Chan.

Love apparently remained committed to the character until the moment the show ended.

Prosecutors say agents arrested him in Boise while he was still wearing his 49ers apparel. Investigators reportedly later found additional San Francisco gear, including a helmet, inside an Airbnb associated with him.

After four years of pretending to belong in an NFL locker room, Love’s alleged fake football career finally ended at an airport. 

Not with a roster cut, but with the FBI. 

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