FBI arrests man posing as NFL player in multi-state fraud scheme after victim’s report
A Vancouver woman’s report to the FBI led to the arrest of Daejon Love and a teenage accomplice accused of defrauding more than 60 women across the West for over $1.3 million.
A 22-year-old recent college graduate from Vancouver, Washington, contacted a man on the dating app Bumble in August 2024 who claimed to be a professional football player from Switzerland. After meeting him several times in Oregon and sending him $18,000 through various payment methods, she learned he was a fraudster. Following a warning from another woman on Instagram, she consulted an attorney who directed her to the FBI. The Portland FBI field office, together with federal prosecutors, opened a multi-state investigation that resulted in the August 24 arrests of 35-year-old Daejon Love and 18-year-old Taylor Jamie Chan in Boise, Idaho.
"Unlike other online scams, he has contact with the people… He’s taking you to dinner, wining you, and then he’s taking all your money and making you go into debt, and it’s abhorrent," said attorney Scott Mullins.
Federal agents say Love and Chan operated a scheme since February 2022, using fabricated identities—including a false affiliation with the San Francisco 49ers—and AI-enhanced images to lure women, primarily recent graduates, into investing money in bogus accounts. Prosecutors allege the pair defrauded 26 women in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and California of at least $1.3 million and have identified more than 35 additional potential victims, bringing the total to over 60.
Love remains in custody in Idaho awaiting a federal court appearance in Oregon; Chan, represented by attorney C. Renee Manes, has denied the charges. The NFL and the 49ers confirmed that Love was never employed or associated with the league. The victim, identified only by initials M.F., said the experience left her with significant financial loss and emotional trauma, but expressed relief that the perpetrators have been apprehended.