A nonprofit organization based in Wisconsin is saying that Jacob Fatu no-showed a charity wrestling event in April, and has not returned money he was pre-paid for the appearance.
Representatives for Jake’s Network of Hope spoke with NBC 26 on Thursday, alleging that Fatu “ghosted” them after failing to appear for the Hits for Hope fundraiser. On the communication with Fatu prior to the event, Director of Development Jenn Harper stated:
“Jacob called and said that there was a family emergency. We gave him the benefit of the doubt. At Jake’s, we are 100% about family and I said, ‘if you can’t make it, that’s fine. We rescheduled the flight that he missed originally, and about an hour after that flight took off, we were made aware from him that he wasn’t coming. After that, he ghosted us, he ghosted the production team that puts together the wrestling show, and he ghosted the person that booked him for us.”
Harper would break down the numbers on what they had pre-paid Fatu for the appearance, including expenses for his hotel, both flights, and posters for the wrestler to autograph at the event. In all, the organization says they spent $2,633.
Despite this being a repeat of a similar incident alleged by Pro Wrestling KING in South Bend, Indiana, the organization has said that a “major name” from Fatu’s family reached out regarding the incident, promising to attend the nonprofit’s event next year.
Source: Wrestling Observer