Thousands of intimate images found in hacking investigation of former NFL and Michigan coach
Investigators have seized thousands of intimate photos and videos from a former Baltimore Ravens and University of Michigan assistant football coach who is charged with hacking into the computer accounts of college athletes, the U.S. Justice Department told victims.
The disclosure came in a court filing Tuesday in a lawsuit against Matt Weiss and the university. Lawyers for victims included an email that was sent by the government after he was indicted in March.
Weiss got access to the social media, email and cloud storage accounts of more than 2,000 athletes, as well as more than 1,300 students or alumni from schools across the U.S., in an effort to find private images, primarily of women, according to the indictment.
The email further describes and quantifies what was found by investigators.
"Thousands of candid, intimate photographs and videos have been seized from the defendant's electronic devices and from his cloud storage accounts. Many show victims naked. Some show victims engaged in explicit sexual acts,' the Justice Department's Mega Victim Case Assistance Program said.
Weiss has pleaded not guilty to identity theft and unauthorized computer access, from 2015 to 2023. He and his lawyer have refused to comment about the case.
Near the end of the alleged scheme, Weiss was Michigan's co-offensive coordinator in 2022 when the Wolverines finished 13-1 and played in the College Football Playoff. He was fired in 2023 during an investigation of his computer use. He had earlier spent more than a decade with the NFL 's Baltimore Ravens.
Los Angeles Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh, who was Weiss' boss at Michigan, called the allegations 'shocking.' His brother, John Harbaugh, coach of the Ravens, used the same word when talking to reporters at the NFL's annual spring meeting.
Parker Stinar, a lawyer who has filed one of many lawsuits against Weiss, the university and an outside technology vendor, wants a judge to order them to start turning over evidence of what happened. The university has not commented on the lawsuits and has weeks to formally respond in federal court.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Active shooter drives truck into church and opens fire on congregation in Michigan
An active shooter was killed after driving their car into a church and opening fire on a congregation in Michigan on Saturday. The shooter was shot and killed by a security guard for the Crosspointe Church in Wayne, the Michigan Police Department confirmed. At least one other victim was shot and injured in the leg. Officers are actively investigating the scene and have urged residents to stay away from the area. This is a breaking news story.
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Baby black bear with plastic lid stuck on its neck for TWO YEARS is finally freed
A baby black bear who had been roaming around with a plastic lid over its neck for two years has finally been freed. The two-year-old bear was first spotted in 2023 when it was a small cub on trail camera photos with the lid around its neck in Michigan. Biologists at the Department of Natural Resources have attempted to locate the suffering cub for years, but the black bear proved elusive. The cub occasionally popped up on trail cameras over the last two years, just to disappear a day later. A breakthrough came in May when a resident of Hillman, a town outside of Lewiston with a population under 1,000, spotted the trapped bear. The resident alerted biologists, and the Department of Natural Resources set up a trap to catch the bear. A baited enclosure captured the black bear on June 2, and scientists gave it anesthesia to relieve the bear from the plastic lid. The black bear's measurements were and it only weighed 110 pounds. The animal had suffered significant scarring and had an infection on its neck from the lid, but the department said it was healthy otherwise. After the anesthetics wore off, scientists released the black bear into the wild, free at last. Cody Norton of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources said the bear's suffering was a lesson to practicing safe bear baiting methods. Bear baiting is legal in the state on private land, but hunters are prohibited from using containers between one and 22 inches in diameter, according to the DNR. Scientists didn't know how the bear got stuck, but noted that the lid seemed to fit the containers that hunters use to lure black bears. Hunters put chicken feed or other attracting materials in the containers to lure the bears before killing them. Norton also noted that the bear could've gotten stuck after rummaging through garbage. 'Container openings of a certain size can result in bears and other wildlife getting their heads or other body parts stuck in them, leading to injury or death,' Norton said. The DNR advises those who live in areas with a high black bear population to securely dispose of food, garbage, and recycling. Leaving pet food outdoors, failing to clean outdoor grills, and placing bird feeders outside can also attract bears.
Daily Mail
7 hours ago
- Daily Mail
High school coach kills student inside her home before shooting himself in devastating murder-suicide
A Michigan teenager was gunned down inside her home by her former high school bowling coach, who then turned the gun on himself in a murder-suicide, police said. Bedford High School graduate Gwendolyn Smith, 17, was allegedly shot multiple times by Ryne Leist, 38, a former volunteer coach with the school's bowling club. The incident took place inside her stepfather's home in Bedford Township on June 14, Monroe County Sheriff's Office said. Smith's stepfather Matthew Kennerson discovered the scene after he returned home around 6pm. Monroe County Sheriff Troy Goodnough confirmed Leist died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Smith's death was ruled a homicide. Authorities have not said how Leist, who was married and a father-of-one, entered the home, nor have they detailed any possible motive. 'At this time, the point of entry and access remains under investigation,' Goodnough said during a press conference. The sheriff also declined to elaborate on the nature of the relationship between the teen and her former coach but said: 'Gwendolyn did not consider the relation between the two of them to be romantic'. Leist, who had recently resigned from his job at a local bowling alley, had previously worked with the school's bowling club, but was not an official employee of Bedford Public Schools. He had passed all required background checks to volunteer with youth sports in Michigan, Superintendent Carl Shultz told WTOL. In a heartbreaking tribute on Facebook, Shultz said Smith was as 'an extraordinary young woman whose presence left an indelible mark on our school community'. He wrote: 'It is with a heavy heart that I share the tragic and heartbreaking news of the loss of one of our own - Gwendolyn Smith, a 2025 graduate of Bedford School. Gwen will be remembered for her kindness, her bright spirit, and the joy she brought to those around her.' The teen's stepmother, Heather Smith, expressed the family's devastation in an emotional Facebook post. She said: 'We aren't supposed to outlive our children. Everyone loved Gwen. She was kind, talented and the best kid an evil stepmother could ask for. My middle daughter, my baby, was murdered.' Kennerson had proudly celebrated his stepdaughter's graduation just two weeks earlier, sharing a smiling photo of her in cap and gown. 'Really proud stepdad!' he wrote at the time. Two weeks later, he added a heartbreaking update: 'Love you forever… I'm so sorry I couldn't save you…' Shultz has since launched a GoFundMe to support the family, which has raised over $18,000. He told reporters: 'I was compelled to really help them out and make sure they had the resources necessary to be able to take care of what they needed to due to this horrible tragedy,' he told reporters. 'I'm always a parent first, I'm an educator second. But as a parent, I don't know how you get up the next day. They're extremely strong and they're doing everything they can to hold everything together, but I was just trying to help out as much as I could. 'This tragic and unnecessary loss cannot be explained,' Shultz said. 'It has shaken our entire Bedford community, and our hearts and prayers go out to Gwen's family and the many friends whose lives she touched so deeply.'
