Woman says she reported alleged 49ers impersonator to team in December
A woman who says she is a victim in the FBI's fraud case against Daejon Love, a man who is accused of impersonating a San Francisco 49ers player, told ESPN on Tuesday that she submitted a complaint about him via the team's website in December, eight months before he was arrested.
Gwen Herndon said she sent a "complaint/concern" form submission to the Niners on Dec. 20, 2025. According to her message, which was reviewed by ESPN, Herndon wrote that "there is a federal investigation surrounding a man pretending to be a 49ers player," naming Love, and saying he stole money from women and that "he is severely damaging the reputation of your team."
"I wanted you to be aware of the situation and hopefully proactive in denouncing his involvement on your team," she wrote in the message.
In the email exchange provided by Herndon, she received a response from a general Levi's Stadium guest services account a week later on Dec. 27, 2025.
"We take reports of individuals misrepresenting themselves as members of the San Francisco 49ers very seriously," the response said. "For safety and legal reasons, the team cannot comment on ongoing investigations or specific individuals. However, we appreciate you bringing this to our attention and encouraging proactive measures to protect the integrity of the organization.
"If you have information that could assist law enforcement or legal authorities, we encourage you to contact the appropriate agencies directly. Our internal team will also monitor any instances of impersonation and take action as appropriate to protect fans and the team's reputation. Thank you again for your vigilance and concern for the Niners community," the email said.
Herndon said she had no further contact with the 49ers after the email response in December. It's unclear whether anyone at the Niners reviewed the email Herndon said she sent. A Niners team source told ESPN last week that the team had not received any reports about Love before it was contacted by the FBI in August.
On Tuesday, a 49ers spokesperson declined to confirm the email's existence or to provide further comment on the email, citing the FBI's ongoing investigation.
Love and his alleged partner in the scheme, Taylor Chan, were arrested Aug. 24 and charged with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Federal authorities said the duo defrauded more than two dozen women out of about $1.3 million.
Love would meet women via dating apps, falsely portray himself as a "legitimately wealthy" 49ers player or real estate investor and solicit money from them, the FBI said. According to federal court filings, Love was wearing 49ers apparel when he was arrested in Boise, Idaho, and "the FBI later learned from interviews that Love was in Boise as part of his scheme and was actively defrauding three more victims in Idaho."
The Portland (Oregon) FBI said last week its investigation began on Sept. 30, 2024. According to the FBI's criminal complaint, "Investigators interviewed representatives from both the NFL and the 49ers regarding [Love's] affiliation with the 49ers and NFL at large. The representatives confirmed [Love] has never been employed with the 49ers or the NFL."
In a news conference Friday, Portland FBI special agent in charge Doug Olson said the Niners were "completely cooperative" in the investigation.
"They were very helpful in doing things that most people think are probably pretty simple, but it's not always that easy to confirm," Olson said. "Like, this person was, like, never an employee, never a player, not even ever in the NFL. They were able to help with a lot of that stuff. They were completely cooperative throughout the entire investigation."
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Herndon, 24, told ESPN that she contacted the Niners because she wanted to prevent Love from scamming anyone else.
"It was apparent to me that there were so many victims and there were going to continue to be victims unless a public statement was made and was very visible," she said. "I knew that based on how fast he was moving."
In a statement to ESPN, a spokesperson for the Portland FBI office said, "The FBI investigates alleged violations of federal crime, and those allegations have to be proven in court by prosecutors beyond a reasonable doubt. It's paramount that investigations are thorough and take the necessary time to build the case for prosecution. Some investigations, particularly white-collar investigations, can take years, and some may not lead to charges."
Olson said Friday that the agency had identified 35 more potential victims of Love since they arrested him in August.
Herndon said she reported her allegations of being scammed by Love to the FBI and to her local police department in Eugene, Oregon [Eugene police declined to release records on Love, citing an open case]. Herndon also created the Facebook group "Victims of Jon Love" as a way to warn others about Love. She also said she published an ad for four consecutive weeks in April 2025 in Eugene Weekly, the only way she could serve Love with a small claims' civil lawsuit, because she struggled to locate an address for him.
In March 2025, Herndon, a real estate agent, sued Love in small claims' civil court in Oregon, alleging that she gave Love $10,000 for an investment idea he pitched to her. She said that when she started asking questions about her investment and requested her money back, he blocked her.
Since then, Herndon says she has been trying to spread awareness about Love's fraud.
"Anyone I could try and get to listen to me," Herndon said. "There is not one avenue I did not take."
Herndon said she didn't respond to the email she received back from guest services because she was frustrated that another organization would not publicly denounce Love.
"I trusted the Niners and believed them in saying there wasn't much that they could do," she said. "It was enough for me to know that they knew. In their own right, I also think that they are a victim.
"It's unfortunate that it was possible that it [the email] wasn't escalated and seen the way I hoped it was."
