widens

Love is the name. Fraud allegedly was his game. And the list of his victims — several of whom said they became romantically involved with him — continues to grow.

Daejon Labrayae Love, 35, and his accomplice Taylor Jamie Chan, 18, remain in federal custody after their arrest Aug. 24 in Boise, Idaho, on wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges. The FBI charged the two men with scamming at least 26 women in four states out of at least $1.3 million.

Since then many more women have come forward to say they were victims of Love’s schemes, which often involved him impersonating a San Francisco 49ers player. The FBI said it has identified 35 additional women who say they were defrauded, ratcheting up the number of alleged victims to more than 60.

The latest development is especially troubling. A woman told ESPN on Tuesday that she submitted a complaint about Love on the 49ers website eight months ago on Dec. 20, 2025, yet the team apparently did little with the information.

Gwen Herndon submitted a complaint/concern form, writing “there is a federal investigation surrounding a man pretending to be a 49ers player.” She named Love, saying he stole money from women.

“I wanted you to be aware of the situation and are hopefully proactive in denouncing his involvement on your team,” she wrote in the message, which was reviewed by ESPN.

Herndon said the only response she received from the 49ers came from a Levi’s Stadium guest services account a week after her report, encouraging her to contact law enforcement agencies with the information.

“We take reports of individuals misrepresenting themselves as members of the San Francisco 49ers very seriously,” the 49ers response said. “For safety and legal reasons, the team cannot comment on ongoing investigations or specific individuals…. Our internal team will also monitor any instances of impersonation and take action as appropriate to protect fans and the team’s reputation.”

A 49ers spokesperson declined to confirm that Herndon’s email was viewed by team officials, citing the ongoing FBI investigation.

Federal investigators, meanwhile, are working to verify that the 35 women who have come forward in recent days are in fact victims of Love and Chan, Portland FBI Special Agent in Charge Doug Olson said in a news conference.

“We were surprised how many people were victimized in such a short period of time and then to have that many more come forward,” Olson said. “It’s a large volume for just a couple of subjects. Our concern is that this fraud could be replicated by other individuals that are out there victimizing other people in similar schemes.”

The FBI alleges that from February 2022 until they were arrested, Love and Chan fraudulently solicited money from women in California, Oregon, Washington and Idaho.

Love portrayed himself on Instagram as a 49ers wide receiver who went undrafted but worked his way onto the roster. He met many of the women through dating apps and developed romantic relationships with several, according to the FBI. Chan falsely posed as Love’s financial adviser.

In an Instagram Story titled “NFL Journey,” Love held a 49ers helmet while driving and said, “I’m on my way to get my mom. I know I get a lot of fans who want to know how football works or how I got involved in the league…. If you know me and see me in person I’ll explain.”

Experts on interpersonal relationships say that a person can instantly assume someone is trustworthy who exudes warmth and confidence as a first impression — especially if they find the person attractive.

“When we meet someone for the first time, our brains are quietly trying to answer two big questions: Can I trust this person, and do they seem capable and confident?,” said Tammi Pickle, an executive at the personalized matchmaking agency Elite Connections. “Someone who comes across as confident might suddenly seem smarter, kinder, more successful and even more trustworthy simply because of the way they carry themselves.

“When we are attracted to someone, our brains have a tendency to fill in the blanks with positive assumptions. The catch? Those assumptions aren’t always accurate.”

Love quickly gained the trust of dozens of women, allegedly convincing them to give him large sums of money. The FBI said Love instructed several women who did not have cash to invest to take out personal loans, assuring them they would quickly be repaid.

“The scheme relied on Love’s creation of fictitious personas and display of a lavish lifestyle which Love presented to victims both in person and on social media websites,” federal authorities said in a press release.

“Chan and Love also hosted three-way FaceTime calls in which they showed victims falsified investment gains and encouraged victims to part with their money. Victims sent Love and Chan money due to their belief that their money would be invested in legitimate investment vehicles on the victims’ behalf.”

One women who didn’t fall for Love’s scheme told KPTV in Oregon that she went on a 2024 date with him in 2024 after meeting on a dating app. He told her his name was John Prince and claimed he was a Swiss real estate developer.

Anderson said his behavior during their first date raised suspicion.

“He said, ‘I’m very intentional and efficient when it comes to dating, and if I pursue you, you will be the only one I pursue. I need someone who has been around money, who understands that, you know, these things aren’t luxuries to me. This is just my normal life.’

“Within five minutes, I decided I wasn’t gonna see him again.”

Love also manipulated AI. Search engines and AI rely on web scraping and frequency of mentions, and the sheer volume of his fake posts caused AI to mistakenly identify him as an NFL wide receiver. He showed screenshots of erroneous AI search summaries to alleged victims, convincing them he was worthy of their trust.

On an Instagram story, he posted a one screenshot of a webpage AI Overview that says “Daejon Love is a wide receiver for the San Francisco 49ers and information about his position, contract and teammate texting habits is available online. He is also associated with the team in various social media content and articles.”

Love then turns the camera on himself and says, “That’s Google. That’s not me, that’s Google.”

He goes on to explain why he isn’t currently playing, lifting a crooked finger to the camera and saying he is injured. He concludes the story by again saying he wants “full transparency” because “people ask, what do I do? How can I afford a $500,000 car? How can I afford a $300,000 [Lamborghini] Urus? “

He says that he is driving to pick up his mother, then concludes by inviting those watching to reach out to him in person.

In the month before his arrest, Love traveled to New Mexico, California, Oregon, Nevada, Utah and Idaho to meet with women, according to investigators. He allegedly used several fictitious names, including Jon Love, Avril Lyto Love and Jordan Love.

The romp abruptly ended at the Boise airport when Love and Chan were removed from a white sports car by federal agents, according to a video obtained by TMZ. Love appears to be wearing red Niners gear as he is handcuffed.

“Victims were encouraged to take out personal loans and make life-altering financial decisions based on the belief they were building a future with someone they cared about,” said Olson, the FBI special agent. “Once the money was taken, the victims were cut off, left without answers, without funds, and often without closure. Many lost not only their savings, but their sense of security and confidence.”

The U.S. Army is calling for new potential options for replacing the venerable Stinger short-range heat-seeking surface-to-air missile. The service has already been funding work on two competing designs from Lockheed Martin and Raytheon under its Next-Generation Short-Range Interceptor (NGSRI) program since 2023. The Army is currently aiming to buy 11,000 NGSRI missiles, as well as 2,200 new man-portable launchers, starting in Fiscal Year 2028.

The Army put out a contracting notice regarding what it is calling the NGSRI Alternate Interceptor Demonstration (AID) yesterday. The service is looking to hold an industry day event regarding its plans for the AID at Redstone Arsenal in Alabama next month.

“The Army is seeking to identify additional potential sources to fulfill the NGSRI requirements,” the notice explains. “The Army plans to conduct a demonstration in the Spring 2027 timeframe. A successful demonstration by an offeror may lead to an award for missile procurement.”

“The current NGSRI program was initiated to meet the Department of the Army requirement for Maneuver Short Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) surface to air missile systems to replace the legacy FIM-92 Stinger man-portable air defense system,” the notice adds. “The NGSRI is a high performance, soldier portable, fire and forget, surface to air missile system capable of defeating rotary wing, fixed wing, and Group 2/3 Unmanned Aircraft System threats.”

In U.S. military parlance, Group 2 covers drones with gross weights between 21 and 55 pounds, that can fly up to altitudes of 3,500 feet, and hit top speeds of up to 250 knots. Group 3, the next tier up, is a far broader category that encompasses uncrewed aerial systems weighing anywhere between 55 and 1,320 pounds, with operational ceilings between 3,500 and 18,000 feet, and with top speeds between 100 and 250 knots.

The Iranian-designed Shahed-136 one-way-attack drone is, by far, the best-known example of a Group 3 design, and one that encapsulates the importance of addressing threats in that particular category. Development of kamikaze drones in the Group 2 tier has also been surging globally, including in the United States. Both categories do also include drones configured for surveillance and reconnaissance and other missions.

It is also worth noting here that the Stinger has received upgrades in recent years to improve its effectiveness against drones. You can read more about that missile’s evolution since it was first introduced in the 1970s here.

Stinger missiles with proximity fuzes destroy UAVs

“The NGSRI missile is backwards compatible with the legacy Stinger missile platforms such as SGT STOUT and Marine Corps Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS),” yesterday’s contracting notice also stresses. This has been a key requirement since the program started.

Sgt. Stout is the name given to an air defense system in Army service today that is based on the 8×8 Stryker light armored vehicle. The Sgt. Stout has a turret that can be fitted with up to two four-round launchers for Stingers. Those launchers can also be swapped out for ones that can be loaded with a pair of millimeter-wave radar-guided AGM-114L Hellfire missiles. The turret also has a 30mm XM914 automatic cannon, which can fire proximity-fuzed airbursting rounds against drones and other aerial threats, and a 7.62x51mm M240B machine gun.

The four-round Stinger launchers used on the Sgt. Stout are the same ones found on the older Humvee-based Avenger air defense systems, which are in increasingly limited use in the U.S. Army and Marine Corps. Army Avengers were recently in the news after images emerged showing them protecting President Donald Trump at his golf course in Bedminster, New Jersey.

In its current form, the Marine Corps’ MADIS consists of two 4×4 Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTV) in different configurations. One is armed with Stinger missiles, as well as an XM914 cannon and M240 machine gun, all mounted on a single remote weapon station. The other has the same type of remote weapon station, but without Stingers, and also has added electronic warfare, electronic support measures, and sensor capabilities.

Stinger is still perhaps best known in its shoulder-fired form, also known as the Man-Portable Air Defense System (MANPADS) configuration, as seen in pictures earlier in this piece. The Army has already been pursuing new individual launchers, or Control Launch Assemblies (CLA), for use with existing Stingers, which could also be used with future NGSRI missiles. Lockheed Martin has publicly put forward a new CLA design as part of its NGSRI proposal, which is called QuadStar, as seen in the video below.

Whether or not the newly announced AID plans reflect any major issues with the existing NGSRI competition is unknown. Lockheed Martin and Raytheon have announced the successful passage of major milestones in work on their respective designs at separate points this year. Raytheon is also the current prime contractor for the Stinger.

Stinger is also in widespread service globally. Any replacement the U.S. military might adopt, especially one that is backwards compatible with existing launchers, could easily translate to interest from foreign armed forces. The ongoing war in Ukraine and other conflicts in recent years have contributed to a new surge in demand for MANPADS worldwide, including to help counter growing drone threats.

The U.S. military has been putting new emphasis on diversifying supplier bases and greater government control of intellectual property rights, especially for munitions, in recent years. This is a general focus area that has grown even more since President Trump’s second term began last year. Officials have been open about their desire to reduce reliance on traditional prime contractors and bring in more smaller and non-traditional firms, even for very high-profile weapon system programs. These efforts reflect a particular push to avoid so-called ‘vendor lock’ and promote greater competition, which can also offer benefits when it comes to cost and scaling production.

When it comes to NGSRI, as mentioned, the Army is looking to buy thousands of these missiles, as well as individual launchers, in the coming years. A new demonstration next year would also not preclude the service from ultimately ordering NGSRIs from either Lockheed Martin or Raytheon.

With plans to start production of the selected NGSRI design in Fiscal Year 2028, which starts on October 1 of next year, the Army will need to make a decision about how to proceed with NGSRI relatively soon.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com