Davone Bess has joined a club, but it’s not one of his own choosing.
The Miami Dolphins wide receiver is now in the same company as Peyton Manning, Eli Manning, Asante Samuel, DeMarcus Ware, Tony LaRussa, and many other professional athletes and celebrities.
Bess has become a victim of identify theft through a bogus Twitter account, according to Alex Marvez of FOXSports.com.
In Bess’ case, someone calling himself “Lambo_Weezy” has been passing himself off as the former University of Hawaii receiver and had gained over 1,200 followers by today.
At one point, “Lambo_Weezy” threw down the gauntlet to Tennessee Titans speedy running back Chris Johnson, challenging him to a race.
That didn’t make sense for two reasons.
Bess has a low-key personality.
Plus, Bess has 4.7 to 4.8 speed in the 40-yard dash and would be even more unlikely to talk trash to Johnson, one of the fastest players in the league.
Johnson was convinced, though, that it was actually Bess that was challenging him.
“who is lambo weezy,” Johnson wrote on his Twitter acount. “He want to race me in the words of the great yes I said the great chad ocho cinco child please . . . he really don’t want to race did he even break a 4.5 in the forty . . . omg let me stop making these clowns famous i got a blank check how bout that i’m done talking . . .
“i feel insulted because somebody want to race me who ran a 4.64 i ran 4.24 do the math kill me . . . fans, haters and the people who love me i need help cuz i really don’t understand do people want to just say they the person that out ran me.”
One entry from “Lambo_Weezy” was reportedly even posted while Bess was on the Dolphins’ practice field.
So, Bess’ agent, Kenny Zuckerman, got in touch with NFL Security officials.
“The Twitter site is a 100-percent fake,” Zuckerman wrote in an e-mail to Marvez. “We have contacted all the proper authorities and plan to prosecute this impostor to the fullest extent of the law.
“Fraud is fraud and we are going to protect Davone and his reputation at any cost. He is very upset about this incident and wants everyone to know that he is the victim of an unfortunate scam.”
The Bess impostor even participated in an online chat with fans.
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello emphasized that the league will help out any NFL employees who are being impersonated.
There’s a precedent working in Bess’ favor when it comes to Twitter. LaRussa, the St. Louis Cardinals’ manager, sued Twitter and a settlement was quickly agreed upon.
Twitter is in the process of launching verification software that would protect athletes and celebrities from identify theft.
