Leviev’s family sued “The Tinder Swindler” for impersonation

Shimon Hayut aka Simon Leviev, Theme Netflix Tinder scammerfaces a lawsuit from the real Leviev family, to which he pretended to belong.

In court documents obtained by him the peopleRussian-Israeli diamond mogul Lev Leviev and his family sued Hayut for allegedly impersonating them and “receiving numerous benefits (including material benefits)” for using the family name.

The lawsuit filed in Tel Aviv alleges that Hayut was “cunningly using false words, claiming to be a member of the Leviev family, and that his family would pay and bear the cost of his benefits.”

Court documents allege that Hayot “defrauded, defrauded, defrauded, defrauded, and abused women, men, and businesses around the world.”

“The defendant used the dating app Tinder to locate women he then romantically manipulated, deftly deceived money, and ultimately persuaded him to transfer large sums of money to him under the guise of running away from individuals intending to harm him,” the lawsuit reads.

Jay Ofir, a lawyer for the Leviev family, said this is “only the beginning” of their legal action against Hayut, with more lawsuits in the pipeline.

In a statement to Metro.co.ukA representative of Hayut denied any wrongdoing. Simon believes the family is just trying to insert themselves into the narrative for publicity after the show’s success.

Simon also legally changed his name in 2015 and is looking to get him fired in court.

It is estimated that Hayut stole $10m (£7.4m) from a number of victims under the pseudonym Simon Leviev, after winning their trust by promising expensive dates.

Since the Netflix series aired, Hayut has been banned from Tinder, Hinge, and other dating apps. He recently joined Cameo where he charges $300 (£148) for personal video messages.

Hayot previously served five months of a 15-month prison sentence in Israel after traveling on a forged passport in 2019, when he was released on good behavior. He also spent two years in prison in Finland in 2015 after being accused of defrauding three women, according to Times of Israel.

Three of Hayut’s alleged victims – Cecilie Fjellhøy, Ayleen Koeleman and Pernilla Sjoholm – created a GoFundMe page to raise money to pay off their debts after the documentary was released.