It’s safe to assume that Harper’s legal team have a lot more information than we do, and that this information was sufficient for them to OK this story.
Don’t forget how complicated the world is. If something looks too simple to be true, it probably is.
I imagine the legal review goes like this: "he's not rich, he doesn't have a social media following, and if we spin this shit right everybody will think he's a creepy stalker-slash-murderer so nobody will stand up for him. What's he gonna do, actually put a contract out on us? Yeah, print that shit."
Don’t forget how complicated the world is. If something looks too simple to be true, it probably is.