Man accused of posing as San Francisco 49er to scam women out of $1.3M: DOJ
The scheme relied on Daejon Labrayae Love allegedly creating "fictitious personas" on social media – including that of a successful 49er and of a wealthy real estate investor – that outwardly displayed lavish lifestyles. (Department of Justice)
SAN FRANCISCO - Two men are facing federal conspiracy and wire fraud charges after allegedly engaging in a scheme where one of them posed as a wealthy NFL player for the San Francisco 49ers in order to bilk several women out of more than $1 million with fake investment opportunities.
Posing as 49er and real estate investor
The backstory:
Daejon Labrayae Love, 35, and Taylor Jamie Chan, 18, were arrested in Boise, Idaho on Monday for their alleged participation in the scheme, which authorities said began in February 2022 and continued up until the day the two were arrested.
The Department of Justice said in a news release that Love and Chan’s alleged scheme relied on Love creating "fictitious personas" on social media – including that of a successful 49er and of a wealthy real estate investor – that outwardly displayed lavish lifestyles.
Chan allegedly posed as Love’s financial adviser "to further gain their victims’ trust and demonstrate the validity of the investments," according to the DOJ.
The DOJ also said that Love allegedly created fake bank and investment accounts and balances that he showed to potential victims in order to gain their trust.
"Love convinced many of the victims they were in sincere romantic relationships with Love, that he was a sophisticated investor, and that Chan was his investment adviser who helped Love grow a fortune worth tens of millions of dollars," the DOJ said. "Love had romantic relationships with many of the victims and told them he wanted to build wealth and a future together. Love advertised nonexistent investment vehicles and claimed these investments would generate massive returns for both him and his victims."
Victims then sent Love and Chan money under the belief it would be invested in legitimate investment vehicles. Some victims allegedly even took out personal loans on Love’s direction, who insisted that they would quickly be repaid.
Suspects cut contact with victims
Timeline:
"Once victims had no more money to invest, or if they asked too many questions, Love blocked communication with them, but kept their money," the DOJ said. "Of the victims identified and interviewed, none reported receiving any proceeds, returns on their principle, or investment account information, after sending Love and Chan money."
More than $1 million stolen, DOJ alleges
Dig deeper:
The DOJ said Love and Chan allegedly stole about $1.3 million from at least 26 victims from Oregon, Washington, Idaho and California, though investigators believe there could be more.
Anyone with information on the scheme or who may have been a victim was asked to call the Federal Bureau of Investigation 1-800-CALL-FBI.
The Source: Information for this article came from a news release published by the Department of Justice.