Since Netflix’s documentary “The Tinder Swindler” was released, the world’s eyes have been on Simon Leviev, who allegedly defrauded three women out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
After occasionally taking to his Instagram account, @simon_leviev_official, to deny any accusations, Leviev appeared in a brief television interview by “Inside Edition.”
- He said he “was just a single guy that wanted to meet some girls on Tinder.”
- “I was surprised how many girls wanted me and how many girls offered to travel to meet me without them knowing me,” he said. “I’m not this monster that everybody has created.”
- Leviev said the women interviewed in the Netflix documentary were neither conned or threatened, adding that he never presented himself as the son of a billionaire diamond mogul.
- “I’m a legit businessman,” he said when asked how he funds his lavish lifestyle. “I bought bitcoin in 2011, which (was then worth) nothing, I don’t need to say how much it’s worth now.”
- “I’m not a fraud and I’m not a fake,” Leviev told “Inside Edition.” “People don’t know me so they cannot judge me. I’m the biggest gentleman in the world.”
Leviev's current girlfriend, Israeli model Kate Konlin, was also briefly present in the interview.
- Konlin told Inside Edition, “My god, it’s like how someone can build such a fake story.” When asked whether Leviev had borrowed any money from her, she replied that he had not.
While the women, Cecilie Fjellhøy, Pernilla Sjoholm and Ayleen Charlotte who were defrauded out of 185,000, 103,000 and 25,000 pounds, respectively, are still in debt, according to their GoFundMe. So far, they’ve received more than 8,000 donations.