Editor's note: This story has been updated to clarify when Google search results would have appeared as A.I. results.
The San Francisco 49ers won't have wide deceiver Daejon Love on their roster for the 2026 season.
Love, who has never played for the Niners, let alone the NFL, was arrested Aug. 24
at Boise (Idaho) Airport on wire fraud and conspiracy charges, according to court documents obtained by USA TODAY Sports.The 35-year-old whose full name is Daejon Labrayae Love was arrested along with 18-year-old Taylor Chan as they allegedly defrauded, or attempted to defraud 26 victims, most of them middle-class women in their 20s and 30s, of $1.3 million in a scheme running since February 2022, according to records filed in United States District
Court in Idaho.
The two were transferred to Oregon, where the charges were filed and warrants were issued.
Love met women through social media and dating platforms where his accusers say he posed as a professional football player, notoriously a 49ers' wide receiver. He also posed as a wealthy real estate developer and investor, with Chan acting as his "financial advisor," allegedly lying about Love's financial success and supporting his fabricated stories.
Court records show Love used several aliases, including Jon Love, Avril Lyto Love, and Jordan Love. He often wore 49ers gear everywhere he went, including a replica Niners helmet. He allegedly scammed or tried to scam victims in California, Oregon, Nevada, Utah, Idaho and New Mexico.
"Love is a serial fraudster. His method of operation is to contact women through dating platforms, projecting himself as incredibly financially successful. He told victims he was an NFL player and a wealthy investor who was worth $30 million. His elaborate scam included manipulating the internet to show that he was a bona fide NFL player and lived a luxurious lifestyle," the criminal complaint against Love states.
Daejon Love's unbelievable stories
Before he was posing as an NFL player, Love was simply just a Swiss investor. At least that's how he portrayed himself according to Bay Area-native Kristeen Washington.
Washington told USA TODAY Sports she first encountered Love when he messaged her on Instagram in June 2021.
"Every time we were supposed to meet up, it was some kind of crazy lie," Washington said.
Washington said she noticed red flags when Love asked for her Snapchat instead of her cellphone number.
"I went along with it because I just wanted to see what he was going to say. So we exchanged Snapchats, and that video that I posted was the first thing that he sent me," Washington said.
In the video later posted to Washington's social media, Love explained how his family is from Switzerland, but he moved to Los Angeles when he was eight. He claimed to have gone to school at St. John's in New York, where he was a finance major. He said he moved to Sacramento to open a Balenciaga store in downtown San Francisco, more than 80 miles away.
Washington said Love's claims were "so outrageous" that she had to record the video using a friend's phone to forever capture the moment. She blocked him shortly thereafter, she said.
"There's no normal person that would be able to not only keep up with this, but like, be able to get through it," Washington said. "Like that is habitual, like, that is some sociopath (expletive)."
Washington told USA TODAY Sports that she felt bad for the victims who were bamboozled into giving Love their hard-earned money. Her advice is to not believe everything you see.
"Be careful," Washington said. "You really gotta look for the signs and not believe everything that you see, you know. Do some digging. The internet is free."
Daejon Love as a big spender
One day in 2023, Love showed up at BBQ Blessings, a soul food restaurant-turned-catering business, in Vancouver, Washington. He sported his typical-49ers apparel as he parked his Corvette and walked into the establishment, owner Kris England told USA TODAY Sports.
"All the waitresses were tripping," England said. "They were like, 'there's a football player out here; is this your friend?"
England's restaurant was relatively well known in the area, but he doesn't normally have major athletes dine at his spot. England said the only professional athlete he ever worked with was Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard. England assumed that Lillard might have sent Love, but said Love told him he found BBQ Blessings on Google.
England described Love's actions as what he'd expect from a professional athlete. He said Love bought nearly every item from the menu, and tipped generously to all the waitresses on staff that day, spending nearly $1,000 on menu items including ribs, brisket, pulled pork, chicken, collard greens, mac and cheese, beans, and even red velvet cake.
England assumed Love liked the food. He said Love told him he wanted to connect in the future.
"He left me a big ol' tip," England said. "I remember asking him like, do you play for the 49ers and he was like 'yeah I'm on their practice team.'"
So naturally, England asked Love to take a picture with his son. They exchanged contacts, and about a year later Love wanted to eat at the same spot, but England had transitioned into catering by then. England said Love sent him a voice note saying he'd be playing the following season. They promised to do business together in different capacities, including music and content collaboration, but it never came to fruition.
"Looking back on the whole thing ... I didn't feel like I got scammed or anything like that, bro, because he tipped, he tipped us a lot of money, like he gave me like $500, he took care of my waitresses and all that," England said. "It's cold-blooded that he was spending other people's money and all that, but we never (knew). He showed up with the jewelry. He had the nice car in the front of the restaurant or whatever, bro.
"I thought he was legitimately on the practice squad," England added. "I got cousins that was on a practice squad one time for the Cincinnati Bengals. You know, y'all don't know him. You know what I'm saying? So it wasn't unbelievable to believe that a practice player came in there from hearing about our food, especially Vancouver. (It's) not like predominantly Black, so, when people search soul food on that side of the bridge, we're the top three."
England said he wasn't swindled, but his son was.
"That was the worst part of the whole situation, he was pretty sad, man. I thought he would be kind of thinking it was funny, but he kind of was let down," England told USA TODAY Sports. "It was a letdown for him, and I could kind of see it in his face. But when we heard about it. I was just like, damn it. My father-in-law was right. He wasn't a player. I just kept thinking he said it and I thought he was hating and I said, 'Geez. This guy, man, I got to call him and let him know he was right. He's gonna rub it in my face a little bit."
England even did a surface-level search for Love on Google and results indicated to him he was on the 49ers as a practice player, he said. England said the search was in 2023 before artificial intelligence Google search results, which went public in May 2024.
"It's scamming and fraud, bro. That's horrible. They're taking college tuitions, the money they got saved up, maybe for the children, maybe other resources, maybe even inheritance. We don't know where that money came from. So I can't place a value on how that might affect those people's lives," England said. "Honestly, I think it's just a crazy story to even be a part of. Personally, I feel sorry for the people that got taken advantage of."
England encouraged empathy for the 26 women who in court say they were victimized by Love and Chan, as his attention shifted to his two daughters.
“It's just kind of scary and it just makes you say, we got to really be safe,” England told USA TODAY Sports. “As far as females go, yeah, there's a certain amount of accountability that happens with all of it. But I wouldn't ridicule them for that. I couldn't make fun of them...
“If he's able to create that persona. There's nothing wrong for them to believe that that guy could fill that shoes,” he added. “I got two little girls myself. That's not a joke at all. Now, it's up to me to be able to educate (them) to be able to navigate that situation better."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who is Daejon Love? Two interactions shed light on accused 'fake 49er' scammer
