Manti Te’o has nothing on Chris “Birdman” Andersen.
The Heat forward that at one point had cops investigating Andersen for child pornogra🌞phy. The alleged perpetrator, Shelly Lynn Chartier of Canada, first posed as Andersen online to talk with a California woman and then pretended to be the same woman in conversation with the former Nugget.
Andersen is an easily recognizable NBA character who is known for his colorful tattoos, spiky mohawk and energetic play. He was previously suspended from the league from 2006-2008 for a violation involving a “drug of abuse” before winning a ring with Miami this summer.
“We were always confident that Chris was innocent but we just couldn’t figure out what had happened,” Andersen’s lawyer, Mark Bryant, told ESPN.com. “It turned out that it was a Manti Te’o situation. It was Manti Te’o on steroids.”
Te’o went from star linebacker at Notre Dame to a national story this past winter when reports came out he had a fictitious girlfriend, who he said had passed away last December. While Te’o perpetuated the myth at points, it turned out he was the victim of a Catfish-like scam in which he was tricked into an online relationship with a girl who did not exist.
In this case, Chartier took the web-based crime to another level that involved extortion. Chartier was able to impersonate Andersen , Sports Illustrated reported. Investigators told SI that Andersen was only one of Chartier’s victims, and there is a chance she pulled off the stunt with other professional athletes.
Chartier was able to manipulate ꧋Andersen and the woman to the point where the woman r♏eportedly sent him sexually explicit images, visited him in Denver, and the two were involved in a sexual relationship, though the woman was of legal age at the time.
“When they searched Chris’ house they were basically looking for an I.P. address,” Bryant said. “But it wasn’t there. They kept investigating, but it took time because it ended up involving two countries.”
Andersen has now been cleared of a case that he was entrenched in for 15 months. But Chartier’s legal problems are just beginning.
Sgt. Line Karpish, a spokeswoman with the Royal Canadian🐽 Mounted Police, said Douglas County, Colo., authorities requested assistance on the case in May 2012, and the investigation led to the January arrest of Chartier, 29, of Easterville, Manitoba.
Chartier was chargꦍed with possession and transmission of child pornogꦗraphy, extortion and utter threats, Karpish said. Her next court appearance is Oct. 22. Chartier also faces possible charges in Colorado.
During the investigation, police explained t💮o Andersen how he became a victim in this sche﷽me.
“It was right out of CSI with all the charts,” Bryant said. “When we walked in there both pretty hostile, it had been 15 months since this happened and we were cooperating, but we hadn’t heard anything. Chris had a pretty good scowl.”
With Zach Braziller and AP