Everything The Tinder Swindler on Netflix missed out about the Simon Leviev case

Simon’s first known crime was stealing whilst he was babysitting aged 20


The biggest true crime documentary right now is The Tinder Swindler – it has topped the Netflix top 10 list and been one of the most watched shows in 92 countries worldwide since its release. And this is definitely because of how wild the story it tells is. It explores the case of Simon Leviev, who conned women out of millions all over the world. Despite how shocking the documentary is, it only really scratched the surface, and there are a lot of details from The Tinder Swindler case that the film missed out.

Alongside the film, there’s now also an accompanying podcast, called The Making Of A Swindler, where filmmakers go into more depth with the story. Here is everything Netflix film The Tinder Swindler missed out about the Simon Leviev case. Strap in, there’s a lot.

Everything The Tinder Swindler on Netflix missed out about the Simon Leviev case

via Netflix

Simon’s first known crime was stealing whilst babysitting

It’s been reported the first known crimes associated with Simon Leviev, or shall we say Shimon Hayut, came when he was 20-years-old. He is said to have been babysitting a four-year-old child, and stole checks from the family. This story is briefly mentioned in The Tinder Swindler on Netflix, when journalists broke the story and were inundated with people saying they had run-ins with Simon Leviev. Simon is also said to have stolen checks from his employer while working as a handyman and convinced a classmate to invest in a deal that didn’t exist.

Avishay the business partner took an ‘active role’ with conning people too

In The Making Of A Swindler podcast, it is said that Simon Leviev’s business partner Avishay, known as Avi, had an “active role” with conning people too. Ayleen from the film features in the podcast too, and says when she stopped replying to Simon, Avi would call her and sent her texts to say she needed to send Simon money. “I have no idea what he is or what he was, he disappeared,” she said.

Avi’s name was on some of the bills for Cecilie’s American Express card saying Simon had been paying for his flights, and in the film he is shown on nights out with Simon and the women – but the full extent as to how much he knew is not known.

Everything The Tinder Swindler on Netflix missed out about the Simon Leviev case

via Netflix

Avi and Simon have known each other since they were children

Also in the podcast, it is revealed Avi at least knew Simon was lying about his identity. When Simon was first arrested in 2015 in Finland, Avi paid his bill – and at this point he was going by Shimon Hayut. Filmmakers also say they have seen childhood photos of Avi and Simon together, so their relationship goes way back before the conning began.

The mother of Simon’s child has said she had ‘no indication’ Simon was defrauding other women like he did to her

One of the biggest questions after The Tinder Swindler is the involvement of the woman shown as the mother of Simon’s baby, and some of her comments were missed out of the film. In the podcast about the show, filmmakers say they approached the woman and she did not wish to be featured, saying she wanted to leave the ordeal behind her. Cecilie recalls in the film meeting her in the back of a car, on the way to the airport straight after meeting Simon. She says the presence of her made her feel more comfortable that Simon was a good guy – because she would have said if he wasn’t. It was only later that Cecilie found out Simon had previously been in prison for defrauding her too.

In the podcast it is said Simon went to prison for using her credit cards, and Netflix did speak to her, but she didn’t want to appear on camera. She said she believed Cecilie was “another of Simon’s hookups” and she had “no indication” he was going to defraud her like he had done with her.

Simon launched a civil lawsuit against Cecilie and Pernilla

via Netflix

Simon has always maintained his innocence, saying the women who have spoken out about him are lying. Esquire reports he said: “I have the right to choose whatever name I want, I never presented myself as the son of anyone, but people use their imaginations … I never took a dime from them.” He is said to have launched a civil lawsuit against Cecilie and Pernilla for what they have accused him of.

When Netflix approached Simon to take part in the film, he became ‘agitated’ knowing it wasn’t going to be all about him

At the end of The Tinder Swindler, it is said that Netflix reached out to Simon to appear and he said he would file a lawsuit – but the full extent of the conversation he had with Netflix is missed out. He actually went back and forth in a “cat and mouse” with Netflix, producers said on the podcast. When they approached him, they said he became “agitated” when he found out the film was about the victims, and not just him.

In a voice note sent to filmmakers, Simon said: “I don’t want to be participating in something I don’t have control over. You’re not going to represent the truth you’re going to represent what will sell more and this is going to be a problem.” He added: “As soon as I see something that is not right, my lawyers will be more than happy to sue.”

He is then said to have started “bombarding” the makers of the film with articles about how brilliant he is. He sent an article in which he had told a publication Netflix wanted to make a documentary about his career in real estate. Netflix called his bluff, and rang him in regards to the series he had mentioned in the article, and then he ghosted them.

Everything The Tinder Swindler on Netflix missed out about the Simon Leviev case

via Netflix

A British doctor says she was ‘wined and dined’ by Avi

A British doctor has shared her story of dating Simon Leviev’s business partner, Avi. She says she was “wined and dined” by him and they had a “whirlwind relationship” which fizzled out. The doctor said she met Avi on Tinder in 2017 and only realised who it was she had been dating when the Netflix documentary was released and she saw him in it.

She was treated to overnight hotel stays in London and Berlin and went on nights out with Avi and Simon, adding there was constantly champagne on the tables in nightclubs, they had bodyguards and the whole experience was “like a movie”. They spent lots of time together and she says Simon was constantly ringing Avi, before he burst into their hotel room saying he and Avi had to leave. “He was saying a deal in Amsterdam had gone wrong and we had to go there straight away,” she said. She said she flew home, and the relationship shortly fizzled out.

Read her full story here. 

Simon has been accused of lying again since he left prison

via Netflix

The Netflix documentary says Simon is now a free man. Simon was released early after serving just five months of his sentence. It’s thought his release was down to a programme aimed at reducing the prison population amid the coronavirus pandemic. But, his lying didn’t stop there.

When he was out of prison, he was accused of lying even further, this time about being a medic in order to get an early vaccine dose. In The Times of Israel he said: “I am not someone who waits in line or at places. With all due respect, I will not sit and wait three to four hours. I am not someone who waits and no one can say a word about it.”

Filmmakers spoke to many other victims of Simon Leviev

In the podcast alongside the film, the producers of The Tinder Swindler on Netflix said they spoke to “a number” of other women who said they were victims of Simon Leviev – but they were missed out of the film because they didn’t want to appear on camera. He is also said to have conned private jet companies and hotels, and had a number of outstanding bill payments.

One woman, who spoke under a pseudonym in the podcast, said she dated Simon at the same time he was seeing Cecilie and Ayleen. She recalls Simon telling her that all women he dated “had to look the part” and that she was “too skinny”, her arms were “too hairy” and she need to get a gap in her teeth fixed. He called her “pretty but not polished”. She told filmmakers of a time he had asked her to meet with him, and requested she “dress elegantly”. When she said she didn’t own elegant clothes, he picked her up to go shopping and went to a Gucci store. However, she claims Simon ended up buying himself four Gucci sweaters and then took her to a local mall and got her some sale dresses from Zara. When she lost interest, Simon did too.

Everything The Tinder Swindler on Netflix missed out about the Simon Leviev case

via Netflix

One of Simon’s victims was arrested with him

The Tinder Swindler missed out one particularly wild story, because this victim didn’t want to appear on camera. Simon Leviev told another victim, referred to as Courtney in the podcast, that he was training to be a pilot and was the heir to an airline company. He told her he had plans to start businesses, and wanted her to come and work with him – so she quit her job.

Courtney is referred to as “patient zero” and thinks she may be the first person Simon Leviev ever swindled. One of her first jobs working for Simon was hiring him a car, but she says payments from Simon hadn’t gone through and they were arrested. At the time, Courtney was holding Simon’s wallet for him – which was full of fraudulent credit cards, so she looked just as guilty as him. Courtney and Simon spent the night in custody and in the morning were charged with international credit card fraud. Police thankfully realised Courtney was unaware of what had gone on, and she was acquitted.

The next time Courtney heard of Simon was 10 years later, when a friend sent her an article referring to Simon as “The Tinder Swindler”. “I was gobsmacked, I was flabbergasted,” Courtney said on the podcast. “I couldn’t believe for years he had been defrauding other women.”

One of Cecilie’s banks wrote off her debts

via Netflix

At the end of the Netflix film, it’s said all three women are still paying off their debts. They have now started a GoFundMe to try and get some of their money back. Cecilie, who says she lost over $250k to Simon, declared herself bankrupt after the ordeal. She reportedly said one of her banks wrote off some of her debts, and an employee there appeared as a witness in one of her court cases.

Simon has been banned from Tinder

The Netflix documentary says Simon has been back on Tinder since his release, but is currently dating an Israeli model. In a statement to The Tab, Tinder said: We have conducted internal investigations and can confirm Simon Leviev is no longer active on Tinder under any of his known aliases.” He has been banned from the app.

LLD Diamonds has filed complaints with the police about Simon claiming to be connected to the company

Everything The Tinder Swindler on Netflix missed out about the Simon Leviev case

via Netflix

What held Simon’s con together was him claiming to be the “Prince of Diamonds” and the heir to LLD Diamonds, a company owned by billionaire Lev Leviev. This obviously isn’t true, and the company and Leviev family are less than impressed with being dragged into his web of lies.

Speaking to Newsweek, LLD Diamonds confirmed Simon Leviev, or Shimon Hayut, is nothing to do with the family or the business. A spokesperson said: “LLD Diamonds has been a well-regarded leader in the diamond industry for three decades. Our company has no connection whatsoever with Shimon Hayut. He is a fraud who has tried to exploit our good name to con victims out of millions of dollars. Our sympathies go out to his victims. His fraud has also caused ongoing confusion about our company. Nothing he has said, about LLD or anything else, should be believed. As soon as we learned of the fraud, we filed a complaint with the Israeli police, and we hope that Mr. Hayut faces the justice he deserves.”

In an Instagram story post on the company account it confirmed the company has filed “several” claims with police against Simon Leviev and is “still weighing our civil options”.

The Tinder Swindler is available on Netflix now. For all the latest Netflix news, drops, quizzes and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook. 

Related stories recommended by this writer:

Finished The Tinder Swindler? Watch these nine Netflix shows about wild cons and fraud next

The Tinder Swindler bodyguard is suing Netflix: Who is Peter and where is he now?

• The Tinder Swindler: Who are the real Leviev family and what is LLD Diamonds?