Simon Leviev

Simon Leviev
Born
Shimon Yehuda Hayut

(1990-09-27) 27 September 1990 (age 34)[1]
Ramat Elchanan, Bnei Brak, Israel
Criminal statusReleased,
Criminal chargeTheft, forgery, and fraud
Penalty
  • 3 years in Finnish prison
  • 15 months in Israeli prison, ₪150,000 compensation, ₪20,000 fine
Imprisoned atFinland (2015), Israel (2019)

Simon Leviev (Hebrew: סיימון לבייב; born Shimon Yehuda Hayut, 27 September 1990) is an Israeli businessman convicted of forgery and fraud. According to The Times of Israel, between 2017 and 2019 he allegedly conned an estimated $1 billion dollars from people and banks in a Ponzi scheme.[2][3] His criminal activity became widely known in 2019 after the publication of an article titled "The Tinder Swindler" by investigative journalists from the Norwegian tabloid Verdens Gang, with the support of Israeli journalist Uri Blau, and later with the release of the 2022 Netflix documentary of the same name.[4]

In 2015, Leviev was sentenced to two years in prison in Finland, and in 2019 to 15 months in prison in Israel.[5]

  1. ^ "Svindlerens ofre". VG Nett (in Norwegian). 19 February 2019. Archived from the original on 6 February 2022. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  2. ^ Kranc, Lauren (2 February 2022). "'The Tinder Swindler' True Story: Where Is Simon Leviev Now?". Esquire. Archived from the original on 8 February 2022. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  3. ^ "'Tinder Swindler' extradited back to Israel to face charges". Times of Israel. 7 October 2019. Archived from the original on 7 February 2022.
  4. ^ Horton, Adrian (2 February 2022). "'Catfishing on a whole other level': the shocking story of the Tinder Swindler". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 8 February 2022. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  5. ^ "Israeli 'Tinder swindler' sentenced to 15 months in prison". Time of Israel. 30 December 2019. Archived from the original on 8 February 2022.