‘Tinder Swindler’ Banned from Dating Apps After Netflix Documentary

Shimon Hayut, aka the Tinder Swindler, allegedly scammed multiple women out of $10 million.

By Samantha Bergeson

'Tinder Swindler' Banned From Dating Apps After Netflix Documentary

Samantha Bergeson

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February 9, 2022 9:35 am

Shimon Hayut, "The Tinder Swindler"

Netflix/screenshot

There’s one less fish in the sea for women to date.

Shimon Hayut, who goes by Simon Leviev on Tinder and various other dating apps, is officially banned from a variety of social media platforms. Hayut was the subject of Netflix documentary “The Tinder Swindler,” which premiered on the streaming platform February 2.

Hayut allegedly scammed multiple women for an estimated total of $10 million. Three of Hayut’s alleged victims share their stories in the documentary after connecting with Hayut on Tinder between 2018 and 2019. According to the documentary, the women — Cecilie Fjellhøy, Pernilla Sjoholm, and Ayleen Charlotte — believed Hayut to be Simon Leviev, the son of Israeli diamond tycoon Lev Leviev.

The trio started a GoFundMe crowdfunding campaign to raise money to clear their debts following the release of the documentary.

“The past few days have been a whirlwind, and we three (Ayleen, Pernilla and Cecilie) have been completely shocked and floored by the flood of compassion and support from everyone. The sheer love is more than we ever expected, and we appreciate you all so much,” a statement reads on the GoFundMe page. “We realize there are a thousand other worthy causes to donate to, and remain forever grateful if you choose to donate to this one. All we want are our lives back.”

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The women set a crowdfunding goal of approximately $812,000; they have raised over $52,000 from 1,800 donations in its first three days.

As for Hayut, the end of “The Tinder Swindler” revealed he was back on Tinder, but the company denied Hayut’s profile was still active in a press statement.

“We banned Simon Leviev and any of his known aliases as soon as the story of his actions became public in 2019,” a Tinder spokeswoman said, as reported by NBC News. “In the lead up to the release of the documentary, we conducted additional internal investigations and can confirm Simon Leviev is not active on Tinder under any of his known aliases.”

Hayut was additionally banned from dating sites and apps under Match Group Inc., which owns Match.com, Plenty of Fish, and OkCupid, the spokesperson said. Hayut also reportedly chose to deactivate his Instagram account after the documentary was released.

Hayut does not appear in the film, but a voice message the filmmakers said he sent them was included.

Per NME, Hayut previously wrote on Instagram, “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.”