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

One of Simon Leviev’s victims thinks Peter was conned too

2 years ago

The Tinder Swindler on Netflix introduces us to the wild story of Simon Leviev – the conman who met women on Tinder, posed as a billionaire and conned them out of their lifesavings. The story is almost unbelievable, but one thing the women say made it all feel real was the fact Simon had a team with him – including a bodyguard called Peter – and this allowed The Tinder Swindler to do what he did.

Simon Leviev called himself the “Prince of Diamonds”, telling women he was the heir to LLD Diamonds and the son of the owner, Lev Leviev. He seduced women by treating them to luxury gifts and a fancy lifestyle, all paid for by previous women he had scammed. He would say he needed the cash as threats had been made against him and his life depended on it and would then disappear.

He changed his name and hired a team, all to make his story look legit. One person who is mentioned in The Tinder Swindler, and you now might want to know more about, is his bodyguard Peter. Here’s everything we know about his relationship with Simon, and the latest on where he is now.

Peter the bodyguard of Simon Leviev in The Tinder Swindler on Netflix

via Netflix

Who is Peter the bodyguard in The Tinder Swindler?

In The Tinder Swindler documentary we see pictures of Peter, and he is introduced as the bodyguard to Simon Leviev. He is Eastern European, and typically “scary” looking, being tall and of big build. On the supporting podcast to the show, one of the victims of Simon Leviev says Peter is “full of tattoos and really, really big” and he was hired to make Simon Leviev’s story look legit. Simon’s personal chauffeur described Peter as “humungous”.

Simon told one of his victims that before he got involved with LLD Diamonds, the company owned by the billionaire he claimed to be the son of, he had been involved in arms dealing for the Israeli government. He said the activities he had got up to had become so dangerous that he had been provided his own security – Peter. He thought Peter had done such a good job protecting him that he hired him personally after.

via Netflix

During the time Simon was conning women, he would often send photos of Peter injured, saying he had been beaten by “enemies” and these injuries made the women believe Simon and his team were under genuine threat. Quite often, the women would then give Simon their own credit cards, with Simon telling them his were being tracked by the so-called “enemies”. Peter would also often call Simon and tell him of incoming danger and “security issues” which gave him a quick excuse to leave the women he was with – sometimes to just go straight to meeting the next woman.

Where is Peter now?

via Netflix

At the end of the Netflix documentary, it says both Peter and Simon Leviev’s business partner Avishkay have never been charged for being involved with Simon Leviev. Ayleen, who features in the Netflix show, also took part in the supporting podcast. In this she says Peter disappeared around six months into her relationship with Simon Leviev. She says “he quit” his role as a security guard, and she thinks he may have “genuinely been mislead” by Simon too. She recalls hearing a conversation between Simon and Peter, where Peter was saying he hadn’t been paid by Simon. After he quit, Simon told Ayleen that Peter had gone to work for their enemies because he had been offered €500k by them, so Simon let him go.

An expert in high-profile security speaks on the podcast, who says Peter could have “easily been duped” by Simon as well. “They [security and bodyguards] are desperate for work, so a lot of due diligence is not carried out,” he said. He says a freelance bodyguard like Peter “may not have the resources” to carry out the full background checks on someone like Simon Leviev before working with them, so could “easily be duped” by him and not know what they were getting themselves into.

via Netflix

Peter is now said to be suing Netflix over the documentary – according to Peter’s lawyer, he had no part in any scam, and he is now suing for breaching his “human rights”, which have led to him suffering mentally. Speaking to LADbible, Joanna Parafianowicz said nobody reached out and spoke to her client ahead of the documentary being made. “No one has the right to deprive a person of basic rights, such as the right to image and the right to the protection of personal data,” she said. “The movie doesn’t tell my client’s story, and it must be underlined – no charges have been ever brought against him regarding this case. He’s never been involved in Simon’s businesses. However, by many viewers he’s being associated with Simon Leviev’s behaviour.

“Netflix’s production neither have asked my client for permission to publish his image nor for his comment on the case. As a result of the unexpected movie publication and its immediate popularity, my client lost anonymity within just one day, the ability to work as a bodyguard, probably forever, as well as his reputation. Peter is in a bad mental state now. We both believe that even such a giant like Netflix cannot violate basic human rights.”

It has not been confirmed if Peter knew what Simon was doing or was compliant. In the podcast, filmmakers say Netflix reached out to Peter to see if he wanted to be featured in either the show or the podcast and he did not respond.

The Making Of A Swindler podcast is available on Apple and Spotify. 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.