The Tinder Swindler is set to enthral Netflix fans with its chilling true crime story.
Directed by Felicity Morris, the series drops on the streaming service on February 2 and follows a group of women who were defrauded by dating app-based swindler Simon Hayut as they team up to hunt him down and recover the millions of dollars he stole from them.
In order to con the women, Shimon posed as Simon Leviev, pretending to be the son of billionaire Russian-Israeli diamond mogul Lev Leviev.
Referring to himself as the ‘prince of diamonds’, Shimon went so far as to legally change his surname to Leviev in order to portray Lev’s heir.
But, who is the real ‘king of diamonds’ Lev Leviev, and, how did he make his fortune?
Who is Lev Leviev?
(Image: WireImage)
Lev Leviev is a 65-year-old businessman, philanthropist and investor who was born in Uzbekistan in 1956.
He fled Uzbekistan with his family at the age of 15 and moved to Israel, beginning his career as a humble apprentice in a diamond polishing plant which would later give him the skills needed to amass his vast fortune.
Whilst in the role, Leviev learned every step of the diamond cutting process.
After briefly finding employment as communications directorate of the Israel Defense Forces, he would later use the skills and knowledge base to establish his own diamond polishing plant.
‘King of diamonds’
(Image: Anton Novoderezhkin/TASS)
With his knowledge of the industry, Leviev quickly established his own integrated diamond outfit LLD Diamonds which became one of the largest diamond manufacturers in the world.
The businessman defied convention by undercutting the DeBeers diamond cartel and striking his own diamond-producing deals with Angola and Russia – earning his nickname the ‘king of diamonds’.
Leviev also opened diamond mines in countries such as South Africa and in May 2006, opened the flagship LEVIEV jewellery boutique on London’s Old Bond Street.
Today, Leviev is the controlling shareholder of real estate and construction company Africa Israel Investments.
As of 2018, he was acknowledged as a billionaire by Forbes Magazine and is the founder of the Or Avner Charitable Foundation.
Family controversy
(Image: simon_leviev_official/Instagram)
While con artist Shimon Hayut only pretended to be the son of Lev Leviev, the billionaire has nine children of his own.
Leviev has been married to his only wife Olga for a number of years.
The Tindler Swindler aside, Leviev’s real-life family are also known to have allegedly run afoul of the law.
In 2018, his real-life son Zevulun and brother Moshe were arrested in Israel and accused of being involved in a diamond smuggling operation.
Reuters reported that lawyers for both parties refuted the allegations and denied any involvement on behalf of the pair.
LLD Diamonds said in a statement at the time: “Mr Leviev and the companies in his control operate in accordance with the proper norms while adhering to the law.
“We hope that the matter will be clarified soon and the suspicions will be proven baseless.”
The Tinder Swindler is available to stream on Netflix.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
