The Tinder Swindler

About

The Tinder Swindler refers to a true-crime documentary about Simon Leviev, a con artist allegedly responsible for catfishing and stealing millions of dollars from women on the dating app Tinder. Pretending to be the son of a diamond mogul, Leviev was able to convince women into giving him sizable loans to fund his rich lifestyle. The movie was released for streaming in February 2022 on Netflix, inspiring multiple reactions and memes across social media platforms, as well as further investigations and stories that surfaced going into the year. In March 2022, Shimon Hayut was sued by the Leviev family he pretended to be a part of.

History

On February 2nd, 2022, The Tinder Swindler, directed by Felicity Morris, was released for streaming on Netflix. The true-crime documentary follows the accounts of three women who were victimized by a Tinder user named Simon Leviev. In accordance with all three women, Leviev lied about his identity, claiming that he was the son of a Russian-Israeli diamond mogul named Lev Leviev. He used his projected wealth and looks to lure women into a romance with him, highlighted by expensive dinners and private jet rides.

Further on in his con, Leviev would stage attacks from his "enemies," claiming that people were after him and his wealth. After these enemies "stole" a lump sum of his money, Leviev would ask his dates for a sizeable loan to financially compensate him. He'd then proceed to ghost them, using their money to fuel his lifestyle and effectively creating an ongoing Ponzi Scheme. Before he ghosted them, however, he provided them forged bank transfers to allude that he'd given them back their money in full.

At the end of the documentary, one of the victims, Ayleen, revealed that Leviev, whose real name is Shimon Hayut, was arrested before the documentary aired. He was taken into custody after being caught with a fake passport at an airport.

Online Reactions

The film was received well by critics and audiences alike. For instance, the documentary received an approval rating of 94 percent on Rotten Tomatoes^[1] as well as an 80 percent score from audience reviews.

Post-release, users on Twitter and other social media platforms reacted to the story, sharing takes and memes in reference to the documentary. For instance, on February 2nd, 2022, Twitter^[2] user wxndae tweeted about the movie's ending, citing the "hypocrisy" she perceived in Leviev's arrest. Her tweet (shown below, left) received roughly 3,300 likes over the course of two weeks. Twitter^[3] user dolls844 also tweeted about the documentary the day it was released and referenced in her tweet the hypocrisy surrounding Leviev's arrest in regards to him only being indicted for passport fraud and nothing else. Her tweet (shown below, right) received roughly 1,500 likes, also over two weeks.

Other users on Twitter realized that Simon Leviev's account was still active after the movie's release. For instance, Twitter^[4] user Mz_Sierra_Leone tweeted on February 2nd, 2022, "Looool me searching for Simon Leviev on Instagram," attaching beneath it a video of a woman casually typing. Her tweet (shown below) earned roughly 5,500 likes over the course of two weeks.

Looool me searching for Simon Leviev on Instagram #tinderswindler pic.twitter.com/Zq3r84MUlc

— ✨Miss Williams✨ (@Mz_Sierra_Leone) February 2, 2022

Twitter^[5] user wrightreagan_ posted a screenshot on February 3rd of Leviev's still-active Instagram, captioning it, "Actually crazy how Simon Leviev is still living a life of luxury on money that isn’t his…" and earning over 150 likes in roughly two weeks (shown below). On February 4th, LAD Bible^[6] also posted an article about Leviev's Instagram still being active.

Developments

Simon Leviev Banned From Tinder

On February 4th, 2022, it was reported by Variety^[7] that Simon Leviev's account had been banned from Tinder. Variety received multiple quotes from Tinder representatives on the matter. For instance, they were quoted saying, "We have conducted internal investigations and can confirm Simon Leviev is no longer active on Tinder under any of his known aliases." Variety also stated in their article that Leviev had posted an Instagram Story on February 3rd, stating that he was going to explain his side of the story. However, his account was deleted the next day.

GoFundMe For The Victims

On February 6th, 2022, LAD Bible^[8] reported that the three victims who gave their accounts in the movie had set up a GoFundMe campaign so that fans could help compensate them for the money they lost. On February 14th, The Independent^[9] reported that the GoFundMe campaign had received roughly £100,000, converting to about $113,000 USD.

Odell Walker Jr. Story and Controversy

On February 15th, 2022, The Tinder Swindler trended again online due to a different story that was relayed on Twitter, which many felt was similar. The story was relayed by Twitter^[10] user ItsNiaMonet who told a story in a thread about being conned by a guy named Odell Walker Jr. in 2021. Twitter users related the story to the documentary but the comparisons came to a climax when Walker Jr. posted a tweet^[11] on the 15th, captioning a photo of Simon Leviev with, "#NewProfilePic," earning roughly 1,400 likes and 1,600 quote tweets in less than 24 hours (shown below). Many felt the tweet was tone-deaf but humorous nonetheless.

Tindler Swindler Dating Show

On February 15th, 2022, TMZ^[12] reported that Simon Leviev had signed with a Hollywood manager named Gina Rodriguez in an attempt to further his career. According to the information leak, Leviev stated that he wanted to write a book, star on a dating show and host a dating podcast. The proposed dating show would have women competing for his love, similar to The Bachelor. The New York Post tweeted^[13] about the development on the 16th, earning roughly 4,200 likes in less than 24 hours (shown below).

Leviev Family Lawsuit

On February 28th, 2022, it was reported by People Magazine^[14] that Shimon Hayut was to be sued by the Israeli Russian diamond tycoon Lev Leviev who he pretended to be the son of in his Tinder con. The lawsuit was filed under the alleged impersonation of them and unjustly enriching himself using their last name. The real Leviev family released a statement stating that Hayut had been, "cunningly using false words, claiming to be a member of the Leviev Family, and that his family will pay and bear the costs of his benefits."

The Twitter page of POPSUGARUK^[15] tweeted about the development on March 2nd, earning roughly 1,500 likes in less than 24 hours (shown below, left). The tweet then inspired meme creators to post about the lawsuit, like Twitter^[16] user realTeflonDON_ on March 1st who said, "the Tinder Swindler's being sued by the rich family he claimed to be part of 😂," earning roughly 4,100 likes in two days (shown below, right).

Search Interest

External References