The Tinder Swindler’s Subject Responds to Netflix True Crime Documentary

The Tinder Swindler himself, Shimon Yehuda Hayut, also known as “Simon Leviev,” has responded to the Netflix documentary ahead of the deletion of his Instagram account. Based on the true story of Hayut’s heinous misuse of the dating app, the documentary exposes how he managed to gain an estimated $10 million by conning countless women across Europe into funding his lavish lifestyle through expensive dates and emotional manipulation. Directed by Felicity Morris, the Netflix documentary has garnered much critical acclaim for its detailed account of its subject matter and its compassion for Hayut’s victims.

A known and frequently convicted fraudster, Hayut’s activities were first exposed in 2019 by the Norwegian tabloid Verdens Gang, with the conman being sentenced to 15 months in an Israeli prison, although he ultimately ended up serving only 5 months. However, following the release of the documentary, Tinder permanently banned Hayut (under his assumed name of Leviev) from the dating app and three women have since set up GoFundMe pages in order to help gain compensation for the debts he left them in. The Netflix documentary’s success and prestige has also sparked a podcast companion detailing further information about “Leviev”‘s life and previous scams, as well as how the true-crime narrative was made.

Despite finding himself with thousands of new followers after the release of The Tinder Swindler, Hayut deleted his Instagram account in light of the exposé. But not before posting several highly criticized photos of him enjoying the luxurious lifestyle so many women had unwittingly financed for him. However, as reported in the Independent, Hayut had one last message for his followers before he left the social media site, promising that he “will share [my] side of the story” whilst imploring people to “keep an open mind and heart“:

I will share my side of the story in the next few days when I have sorted out the best and most respectful way to tell it, both to the involved parties and myself. Until then, please keep an open mind and heart.

While Hayut fails to reference The Tinder Swindler by name, it’s evident from his statement that he is far from happy with the documentary and the attention it’s given him. His request that fans of the Netflix hit keep “an open mind and heart” certainly suggests anxiety over how he has been portrayed and a wish to highlight how the situation is, at least for him, more complicated than it appears. However, exactly how Hayut will share his perspective while being respectful to “the involved parties” in the process is currently anyone’s guess.

For many who are even remotely familiar with Hayut’s various scams and history of con-artistry, his response may well be taken with more than a pinch of salt. Since he has a proven and long-standing career as a fraudster and emotional manipulator, some may even consider it naive to expect that he will genuinely release a more detailed disclosure of the situation from his personal viewpoint. But regardless of whether he keeps his word or not, with Netflix considering a film adaption of The Tinder Swindler in light of its success, Hayut will undoubtedly have a hard time justifying himself now that his actions and the grief he’s caused are universally known.

Source: The Independent

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