"I’m not a fraud and I’m not a fake."
The subject of the Netflix documentary underwent an interview recently whereby he says he's a "legit businessman" who was "just a single guy that wanted to meet some girls on Tinder".
The main subject of the hit Netflix production, Shimon Hayut, is making claims that details of 'The Tinder Swindler' documentary are completely false.
Hayut, who went by the alias of Simon Leviev (which would make him the son and heir of diamond mogul Lev Leviev), was the controversial linchpin of many womens' lives, whom he met on the dating app. Three women who believed his games and lies, Cecilie Fjellhøy, Pernilla Sjoholm and Ayleen Charlotte, spoke openly during the feature, divulging in great detail how "swindled" they became with this man being in their lives. As a result of knowing him, they were left hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt.
Speaking during part one of a two-part interview with 'Inside Edition' on Monday, Hayut pushed back at the stories told by the three women in the documentary. He said: "I want to clear my name, I want to say to the world, this is not true."
"I’m not this monster," he continues, "I was just a single guy that wanted to meet some girls on Tinder. I’m not a fraud and I’m not a fake. People don’t know me so they cannot judge me."
When asked whether he lied about being the son of a billionaire diamond mogul, Hayut answered: "No I am not, and I never presented myself [as such]."
He also admitted that he didn’t "feel bad" for the women featured in the Netflix documentary because "they weren’t conned and they weren’t threatened". He says his lavish lifestyle is funded because he is "a legit businessman", having previously invested in Bitcoin.
Shimon Hayut will be joined for the second part of the 'The Tinder Swindler' interview with his girlfriend, model Kate Konlin, which airs on Tuesday. She confirmed that Hayut hasn't borrowed money from her, commenting how she felt about Cecilie, Pernilla and Ayleen recounting their stories: "My God, how someone can build such a fake stunt?"
Cecilie Fjellhøy, Pernilla Sjoholm and Ayleen Charlotte are reportedly just women of many other women across Europe who were caught out by Shimon Hayut. 'The Tinder Swindler' featured these three victims prominently, but director Felicity Morris says there are roughly 25 others who fell for this scam artist that she knows of.
Hayut is a free man, who currently lives in Israel. Following the release of 'The Tinder Swindler', he was banned from Tinder. According to reports, he recently joined Cameo, charging a minimum of $200 per personalised video. He has also signed with a talent agency, with rumours of him wanting to break into Hollywood since his traumatic escapades.
Stream 'The Tinder Swindler' on Netflix.