49ers received warning about alleged player impersonator eight months before FBI arrests
The short version
- Gwen Herndon says she warned the 49ers about Daejon Love via a complaint form on Dec. 20, 2025.
- The team responded Dec. 27, saying it takes impersonation reports seriously but cannot comment on specific investigations.
- Love, 35, and Taylor Chan, 18, were arrested in August at the Boise airport on wire fraud and conspiracy charges.
- Authorities allege more than $1.3 million was taken from over 20 women; the victim count now exceeds 60.
A woman told the team in December 2025 that a man posing as a 49ers player was under federal investigation, according to ESPN.
Gwen Herndon says she reached out to the San Francisco 49ers on Dec. 20, 2025, through a complaint form to warn that a federal investigation was underway into Daejon Love, a man she said was posing as a player for the team. In the message, Herndon wrote that Love had taken money from her and was damaging the organization's reputation, ESPN reported.
The team's general guest services account replied on Dec. 27, saying it treats reports of people falsely claiming to be part of the 49ers seriously but cannot discuss investigations involving specific individuals. Herndon had previously taken Love to Oregon small claims court, saying she handed over $10,000 for a real estate investment and was cut off when she sought a refund.
Love, 35, and Taylor Chan, 18, were taken into custody by the FBI at the airport in Boise, Idaho, in August and face charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Prosecutors allege the two used phony investment schemes to cheat women across Oregon, Washington, Idaho and California, with Love reportedly meeting most of them through dating apps. Authorities say the pair collected roughly $1.3 million from more than 20 women.
The FBI said last week that 35 additional women have come forward, pushing the number of alleged victims past 60. Portland Special Agent in Charge Doug Olson said investigators were struck by how quickly the scheme grew and warned that similar frauds could be copied by others.
