An alleged Israeli fraudster, Simon Leviev, has been arrested in Georgia by authorities after he was convicted of conning several women out of millions of dollars by creating a false online persona to lure victims into emotional and financial entanglements, according to the TRT World report.
According to the Georgian government, the notorious “Tinder Swindler” was picked up after a Red Notice issued by Interpol once he crossed into the country. During the arrest, he has been travelling freely without any agitation.
Who Is Simon Leviev?
Leviev used to lure women on the dating applications and pretend to be the son of Russian diamond tycoon Lev Leviev. He lured innocents by showing off his luxury living lifestyle, flying on private aircraft and staying in ritzy hotels, according to a New York Post report.
The Israeli fraudster later convinced his target to fork over huge sums of money over various pretences, including claiming he was in danger and urgently needed cash.
Also Read | Arab Islamic Summit 2025: Qatari Emir Accuses Israel of Seeking to Make Gaza Unlivable.
As per the online streaming platform Netflix documentary “Tinder Swindler”, he cheated women out of over $10 million from around the globe. He was banned from dating apps after the documentary’s release.
In 2011, Leviev fled to Israel before he could be sentenced on convictions of fraud, theft and forgery. He was in a Finnish prison from 2015 to 2017 for defrauding several women before he was sent back to Israel in 2017.
He then went to Israel again, using a fake passport, until Interpol arrested him in Greece in 2019. He was sentenced to 15 months for the fraud he committed in Israel. He was again released early, in May 2020 after serving just five months amid the COVID-19 pandemic.