Israeli Conman, Shimon Hayut, a/k/a “The Tinder Swindler” is At It Again!

Cashes in on New Found Fame

By: i24News & TJVNews.com

The Tinder Swindler is cashing in on his newfound Netflix fame by selling personalized greeting videos for $225 on Cameo, according to a report in the Daily Mail of the UK.

Shimon Heyada Hayut, 30, who operated under several aliases including Simon Leviev, scammed women he met on Tinder out of an estimated $10 million while posing as the son of a billionaire diamond merchant, the report indicated.

For his part, Leviev has denied the allegations against him and said that they are “completely made up.” The accusations against him and all the negative press that he has been receiving has not stopped him from making money off of his newfound fame.

On his web site, he has launched his own merch line, according to a report in the New York Post. He wrote on his web site, “My enemies are after me, buy a t-shirt.” The Post reported that one design shows his face and the line, “If she loves you, she’ll take out a loan for you.”

The Daily Mail reported that after being exposed in Netflix documentary The Tinder Swindler, released earlier this month, the conman is now using his infamy to flog clips on video-sharing app Cameo.

The report indicated that he mocks his crimes in the videos, giving male users tips on improving their dating profiles to attract more women.

The Daily Mail reported that in one clip, Leviev says: ‘I saw your profile on Tinder, well my friend, you need to change your photos. I think you can do better there, put some photos of friends, of animals, girls love it. Just be yourself.’

Hayut scammed his victims by telling them he had ‘enemies’ after him, and claimed they had to send money so his rivals wouldn’t be able to track him through his finances, according to the Daily Mail report.

The popular Netflix series follows the story of a group of women who were conned out of millions of dollars by himr on a dating app to fund his lifestyle.

Sitting at #2 of Israel’s Top 10 on Netflix, the true-crime documentary tells the story of several women who fell in love with and financially supported Hayut.

Hayut, now known to be the son of El Al Airlines chief Rabbi Yohanan Hayut, would meet women on Tinder–mostly Scandinavian–and build long-distance relationships to eventually swindle them out of large sums of money.

He would first give the women lavish experiences, staying in five-star hotels, eating at fancy restaurants, and flying in private jets.

After several weeks of being a “perfect boyfriend,” Hayut would ask to borrow money because of the situation he found himself in the dangerous world of diamond dealing.

He would coerce the women by sending photos of bloody clothes or his injured bodyguard in the back of an ambulance.

Given his previous spending and apparently luxurious lifestyle, the women believed him and sent money, many times through bank loans.

Hayut was able to develop a complex Ponzi scheme in which he would spend hundreds of thousands of money that he swindled from a previous woman on his current victim.

Some of the women eventually discovered Hayut’s deception and brought their stories to investigative journalists.

After spending two years in a Finnish prison, Hayut was returned to Israel where he was convicted and sentenced to 15 months in prison.

After five months, though, he was released in May 2020 and currently lives as a free man.

Hayut recently posted a message on his Instagram account, before deleting it, writing: “Thank you for all your support.

“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.”