Nathan Fenno

💯

Seattle athletes were terrorized in a spree of burglaries. ‘They feel unsafe in their homes’ More than $700,000 in luxury watches, jewelry and designer leather goods were stolen over a three-month period.

A burglary crew targeted some of Seattle's best-known athletes earlier this year.

Luis Castillo -- twice. Ichiro Suzuki. Blake Snell. Richard Sherman. Julio Rodriguez and Jordyn Huitema.

The crew left broken glass, ransacked homes and terror in its wake.

www.nytimes.com/athletic/671...

Really good reporting from @nathanfenno.bsky.social.

You feel for those who were at home when these brazen and callous burglaries existed. No matter how much money you have, your peace of mind can get shattered.

Seattle athletes were terrorized in a spree of burglaries. ‘They feel unsafe in their homes’ More than $700,000 in luxury watches, jewelry and designer leather goods were stolen over a three-month period.

‘Please, quick … they’re coming’: How a homegrown burglary crew terrorized some of Seattle's best-known athletes.

www.nytimes.com/athletic/671...

At least eight men employed by the Tigers, its business arm or broadcast partner have been accused of misconduct toward women since 2023, including four VPs and two other high-ranking employees, an investigation by The Athletic found.

✍️ @brittghiroli.bsky.social:
www.nytimes.com/athletic/661...

Great read from @carsonkessler.bsky.social and @gabbyherzig.bsky.social ...

Aaron Donald is a future Pro Football Hall of Famer and one of the most dominant defenders in NFL history.

But five years of intensifying harassment from a stalker left him exasperated, uncertain and afraid.

🔗: http://dlvr.it/TMScwy

Aaron Donald was one of the NFL's toughest players. A stalker left him living in fear

"I accidentally married Aaron Donald."

"You can tell people I am delusional. I don't care ..."

This story isn't just creepy, it's terrifying. Great reporting from @nathanfenno.bsky.social on the stalker who left a future Hall of Famer in fear

www.nytimes.com/athletic/654...

A chilling and important piece by @carsonkessler.bsky.social …

The Hockey Canada trial could have been a reckoning. It was something else The eight-week trial proved challenging to manage, leading to two jury dismissals and eventually the judge-only decision.

In the end, what is the final message of the Hockey Canada sexual assault trial?

It could have been a reckoning, but it was something else.

From Katie Strang and me —

www.nytimes.com/athletic/642...

ICE’s go-to charter airline for deportations also flew NCAA teams, Inter Miami and more From March through May of this year, GlobalX operated an estimated 62 percent of deportation flights.

Revealing work from @carsonkessler.bsky.social + @nathanfenno.bsky.social.

www.nytimes.com/athletic/641...

Commentary: I'm fighting Parkinson’s one punch at a time Times columnist Bill Plaschke writes about his experience taking a boxing class to help fight Parkinson's disease symptoms.

A brave and gut-wrenching piece from the great Bill Plaschke.

All the best in your fight, my friend.

www.latimes.com/sports/story...

Breakfast at Bacon and Butter is terrific.
The California Railroad Museum is a fun stop, as well.

Some personal news:

Today is my first day at The Athletic as a senior investigative writer. I'm thrilled to join such a talented and ambitious team. Have a tip about something we should investigate? Please email me at nfenno@theathletic.com.

This is the way.

California lawmakers propose banning sales from dog brokers in crackdown on puppy pipeline Legislation would close the loophole in California's pet retail ban by prohibiting brokers from selling or shipping dogs to consumers in the state, in response to a Times investigation.

CA lawmakers propose banning sales from dog brokers in crackdown on puppy pipeline. Three bills announced today are in response to a Times investigation that found truckloads of dogs from profit-driven mass breeders pour into the state and are resold as locally bred. www.latimes.com/california/s...

Proud to have worked on this video and the associated story with several talented @latimes.com journalists, including @paigestjohn.bsky.social, @melodygutierrez.bsky.social and @mrmarkpotts.com.

YouTube video by Los Angeles Times Escape from the Palisades: Split-second decision making, confusing responses

"Wow, there’s no place to go."

This a harrowing, minute-by-minute account from the @latimes.com of how the Palisades fire evacuation went wrong.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YSU...

Escape from the Palisades: Split-second decision making, confusing responses A deep analysis of the Palisades fire evacuation paints a chaotic scenario: As the fire roared toward homes, major escape routes were gridlocked before the first evacuation orders were given

Escape from the Palisades: Split-second decision making, confusing responses.

Delayed alerts, overwhelmed first responders and inadequate escape routes are all part of the story.

Melody Gutierrez, Nathan Fenno, Paige St. John

www.latimes.com/california/s...

An ex-NBA player's plan for a $5-billion Las Vegas arena is an empty pit. What went wrong? A former NBA player repeatedly promised to build a resort-arena on the Las Vegas Strip. Investors and Nevada officials believed him. Then it all fell apart.

The All Net Resort and Arena saga — with Jackie Lee Robinson playing the central role — unfolded over more than a decade and spanned the globe, reaching Malaysia and Mexico, Switzerland and Qatar.

#longreads

www.latimes.com/world-nation...

Days after telling investors in a letter that the project had run out of money, Robinson received a $50,000 check from his company developing it. The memo line read, “MERRY CHRISTMAS.” In a deposition, Robinson said the company he formed paid himself and others for work done.

Partial bank records for Robinson’s company developing the arena-resort show monthly payments for his home mortgage in a Las Vegas country club, five- and six-figure wire transfers to his wife and payments to Gucci and Louis Vuitton in Beverly Hills.

Small-time investors bought into Robinson’s plan. Internal project records list dozens from Southern California, Nevada and beyond. A project attorney said in 2023 that more than $65 million had been raised from “people who believe in this development.”

In 2022, Robinson told a news conference they had the assets to pay for the multi-billion-dollar arena-resort and bid for an NBA franchise thanks to a former Navy SEAL and California Highway Patrol officer.

Robinson repeatedly said the project had secured funding.

2013: “We have proper financing in place.”
2017: “We have 100% of the money.”
2019: “We have 100% …”
2023: “We have 100% of the cash …”

None of it materialized.

(He didn’t respond to requests for comment.)

An ex-NBA player named Jackie Lee Robinson pledged to build a $5-billion arena and resort on the Las Vegas Strip. It didn’t happen. A Times investigation found a trail of jilted financial backers, questionable spending and broken promises. 🧵

An ex-NBA player's plan for a $5-billion Las Vegas arena is an empty pit. What went wrong? A former NBA player repeatedly promised to build a resort-arena on the Las Vegas Strip. Investors and Nevada officials believed him. Then it all fell apart.

An ex-NBA player pledged to transform an empty lot on the Las Vegas Strip into a $5-billion resort and arena. But a Times investigation found a trail of jilted financial backers, questionable spending and broken promises.

#longreads

www.latimes.com/world-nation...

Mizuhara writes that he "felt terribly guilty about putting my hands on [Ohtani's] money but this was the only solution I could thing of at the time."

In a letter to the judge as part of his sentencing submission, Ippei Mizuhara says he lived "paycheck to paycheck," had to borrow money to make ends meet and started gambling because he was "desperate for money."

From today's filing: "Indeed, defendant’s conduct has harmed Mr. Ohtani’s greatest asset – his reputation and goodwill."