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assisting in the realization of civil and social rights
Love on credit for 250 thousand dollars. How not to become a victim of a marriage scammer using the example of the heroine from the Netflix film "The Tinder Swindler".
We have all heard about marriage scammers: they seem like fairy tale princes who will finally show you true love, but in reality, they will not only leave you heartbroken but also take all your money. It seems that stumbling upon such a scammer is very difficult, but it's not. A skilled manipulator can charm even the most skeptical and distrustful person. Using the example of the heroine of the Netflix documentary "The Tinder Swindler" (2022), we analyze the main mistakes that left her without love and without money.
Cecilia met Simon Leviev, the director of LLD Diamonds and the son of a Russian-Israeli diamond magnate, on the Tinder dating app. Their correspondence began almost instantly, and Simon invited Cecilia to an expensive London hotel. Before going on a date, the girl checked his Instagram: Simon looked perfect. More than a hundred thousand followers, branded clothes, attractive appearance, photos from luxury places — Cecilia was very intrigued.
In reality, Simon looked exactly the same as in the photos, so there seemed to be no reason for suspicion. The date went well: at first, the couple talked about work (Simon even showed Cecilia his photos with his father, the "diamond king"), and then the conversations quickly became more sincere and personal. At the end of the date, Simon said that he really liked Cecilia and wanted to get to know her better. For this, he invited her to fly to Bulgaria together in his own plane. Cecilia decided that it would be stupid to refuse.
Simon liked Cecilia so much from the first meeting that he invited her to fly to another country at his expense. By agreeing to such a trip with a person you've known for an hour, you put yourself in a situation of financial dependence, and that's quite dangerous. You can be kidnapped or forced to do things you don't want to do to "work off" a date at someone else's expense.
Fortunately, this was not Simon's goal. The flight went well, the couple started a relationship, but Simon quickly flew to a new country for "work" matters. Cecilia still felt special, because Simon bought her luxurious bouquets and said how much he loved and missed her.
But as soon as the couple officially started dating, Simon told the girl that a relationship with him could be dangerous: the diamond industry is a brutal business. He was in the middle of a major deal worth 70 million dollars, which was why he was receiving threats. Simon even received a funeral wreath and bullets in the mail. In the end, Simon's security team decided that it was not safe for him to stay in London. Cecilia believed that this was true love and decided to go through all the trials with him.
At some point, Simon proposed to Cecilia that they should live together. But soon after this proposal, Cecilia received a frightening message in the middle of the night: Peter, Simon's bodyguard, had been attacked, although Simon himself was supposed to be the victim. He even attached a photo of the bodyguard covered in blood and a video message from an ambulance. The next morning, Simon told Cecilia that «for security reasons» he was now forbidden to use his credit card because his location could be tracked based on his expenses. Therefore, Simon asked Cecilia to allow him to use her cards. Of course, Cecilia agreed.
Simon issued a new card in Cecilia's name and put money into the account, but before the funds arrived, he asked the girl to bring him 25 thousand dollars in cash to Amsterdam. Cecilia didn't have that much money, so she took out a loan.When Cecilia arrived in Amsterdam with the money, Simon received a call from the same bodyguard, who announced over the speakerphone that «they were already coming for Simon», he needed to turn off the lights in the house and wait for a car to take him to the airport.
To create the appearance of legality for the banks, Simon hired Cecilia to work for his company. According to the documents, the girl's salary was 94 thousand dollars a month. Thanks to this scheme, the banks continued to issue cash loans to Cecilia, and she could increase the limits on her cards. Simon used all the money, and the amounts of loans that the girl had taken out from 9 different banks only grew larger. Very quickly, this amount reached 250 thousand dollars, but Simon promised to repay all the money. However, the checks he returned to Cecilia were impossible to cash.
Cecilia was under constant pressure and believed that without this money, Simon could be killed. But what was really happening? Each time Simon flew to another country, he spent all his time not at business meetings, but at parties with new girls. The scammer would choose one victim, court her, start a relationship, and then the story with wounded Peter and hitmen hunting for Simon would repeat itself. The man didn't even change the photos and videos he sent to his girls.
Enamored women took out a lot of loans, which went not to save Simon's life, but to expensive hotels, yachts, plenty of champagne, and other gifts for the scammer's new victims. In the end, Cecilia told her story to one of the banks and learned that Simon Levai is one of the aliases of a marriage scammer who makes a living by deceiving women. The photos with the diamond magnate father turned out to be Photoshopped, and the photos and videos of the wounded bodyguard, late-night calls asking to urgently leave the country, and everything else were a carefully planned spectacle.
What "red flags" can be noticed in this story? Firstly, Cecilia's relationship with Simon developed too quickly, and at the same time, he always paid for the girl. Accepting such expensive gifts from someone you've just met and moving in with them can be dangerous. Real life is not much like a fairy tale, it is unlikely that a "diamond prince" whom you've known for one day will sincerely swear to you in love and ask you to move in with him at his expense.
Secondly, in fact, Cecilia didn't spend much time with Simon. They mainly communicated on WhatsApp because the man was constantly traveling. Cecilia didn't know where he was, who he was with, or what he was doing, but she believed him. It's much easier to lie on the internet than in reality, so remember: if you decide to live with someone under the same roof, there should be more real communication in that relationship than virtual communication.You cannot trust someone who is only by your side in words, especially if those words cannot be confirmed.
Thirdly, you should not take on huge loans for the sake of another person. Cecilia didn't suspect anything even when she was taking out a loan from the ninth bank. Meanwhile, Simon was in no hurry to return the money.
Fourthly, do not break the law. Simon made fake income statements for Cecilia. If someone tries to involve you in any illegal activity, it's better to leave them immediately.
Fifthly, stay vigilant. Constantly ask yourself if you are sure about the motives of the person close to you. Cecilia didn't ask why one couldn't go to the police if the life of such a wealthy and influential businessman was in danger, and why a person with money would need so much cash on credit. Trust your intuition and critically evaluate the situation.
Sixthly, consult with friends and family you trust. Right at the beginning of her acquaintance with Simon, Cecilia told her friends about the man. Some of them immediately found him suspicious, but Cecilia didn't listen to them.
Stories about marriage scammers are not always so exciting. Sometimes, on the contrary, they don't give any gifts, but only emotionally bind the victim to themselves and demand money. Be careful with online acquaintances. A scammer can make you fall in love with them and then suggest moving in with you. For some reason, they won't be able to buy tickets or pay for other related expenses, which will eventually fall on your shoulders. As soon as the money hits the scammer's account, they will disappear from your life.
How did the story of Simon and Cecilia end? The Norwegian Bank forgave Cecilia's debt (the girl is Norwegian by nationality) after the documentary was released, but she still owes eight other banks. Other victims of Simon are also paying off their loan debts. Simon himself is free. He didn't face any punishment for deceiving the girls. He was prosecuted several times and even imprisoned, but only for using fake documents. For example, in 2019, in Israel, where he is from, he was accused of fraud and sentenced to 15 months in prison, but was released after 5 months for good behavior.
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