Cecilie Fjellhoy thought she had been met by her prince charming to start with.
Just exactly exactly How a conman that is israeli alleged victim claims he swindled her out of $200K
Cecilie Fjellhoy thought she had met her prince charming when she matched on Tinder with Simon Leviev.
Fjellhoy, a 29-year-old Norwegian masters student residing in London, stated she had been swept off her legs to their very very very first date, including a plane that is private to Bulgaria. Fjellhoy said Leviev informed her he ended up being a millionaire that is israeli called himself the « Prince of Diamonds. »
« I happened to be texting my buddies during the time that is same in a bunch talk exactly like, ‘I do not know what’s happening,' » she stated.
Exactly what started being a storybook love converted into a real-life nightmare, Fjellhoy said – one which delivered her into debt and fearing on her behalf security. It’s a cautionary story in the risks of internet dating.
« we hate him, he is therefore horrible, » she stated. « we am simply fed up with crying about that you realize? It is simply therefore painful. I simply hate myself that I did this. »
View the story that is full « Nightline » TONIGHT at 12:35 a.m. ET
Leviev was born Shimon Hayut, a 28-year-old convicted con-man that is israeli served 3 years in Finnish jail for defrauding a few ladies in purchase to finance their luxurious lifestyle of personal jets and quick vehicles, which Fjellhoy said he liked to exhibit off.
Fjellhoy said Hayut defrauded her away from significantly more than $200,000, finding herself lulled in to a false feeling of safety by their grand romantic gestures and flowery declarations of love. She stated she dropped victim to « confidence fraudulence. »
In June, Hayut had been arrested in Greece for making use of a false passport after a joint procedure between Interpol and police that is israeli.
Away from court Hayut told reporters from VG, a Norwegian socket that first broke the storyline, « we will get back once again to Israel, which is my house nation, and I also will face what’s waiting for me personally here and that’s it, and we’ll sort every thing down. Whatever dilemmas we will sort it call at court. that people have actually, »
He now faces extradition to Israel, where he had been indicted last year on theft, forgery and fraudulence fees unrelated to Fjellhoy but he fled the nation before he had been set to face test.
Based on the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, internet-facilitated love frauds, also referred to as self- self- confidence fraud, could be the number 1 form of customer fraudulence when you look at the U.S. throughout the world, victims of self- self- confidence fraudulence lose vast amounts of bucks every year, in line with the FBI.
Fjellhoy, whom shared her tale with “Nightline” early in the day this season, said her relationship with Hayut started out innocently sufficient.
« This was the very first time where we felt like, ‘Oh my god i like him. Plus it appears me back as well,' » She said that he really likes. « He’s texting and then he’s calling in which he generally seems to actually want to get acquainted with me, and I also think i’m a little for that. »
Fjellhoy said Hayut informed her that his task as a diamond dealer, doing work for a business called LLD Diamonds, kept him traveling constantly, so they really dated distance that is long. She stated they sent each other love notes over text, in video clip declarations and vocals tracks.
She stated he arrived to see her in London as he could, but most of the time, she stated she was flown by him to where he had been. She stated he’d always allude to a component of risk inside the task that kept him away, constantly for a personal jet. At one point, Fjellhoy said he informed her he could not get back to London due to threats he had been getting, « but he could easily get me personally to where he had been. »
She stated Hayut claimed become under constant hazard from unknown enemies that are nefarious. She stated he shared with her it had been a risk of involved in the diamond company.
Fjellhoy said Hayut surrounded himself with individuals whom aided perpetuate the misconception, also going as far as to send pictures of himself along with his bodyguard when you look at the medical center when they were allegedly « attacked. »
Based on Fjellhoy, it absolutely was maybe maybe not well before Hayut made a huge ask, begging her to give her personal credit line to him in order for any seats, accommodations and dinners is booked under her title and their expected « enemies, » as she stated he called them, could be tossed down their path.
« One associated with major causes why he required it absolutely was protection… he required my title as being a christian cafe address, he stated, » Fjellhoy told « Nightline. » « I’m sure it appears crazy. but why would he have this giant man he didn’t need the security? with him if »
Fjellhoy said she relented because Hayut promised to pay her straight back, but funding their jet-set lifestyle was costing her. While the cash she ended up being being guaranteed by him was not to arrive.
« My angel My love i recently talked to your bank in addition they said that the transfer of Amex should be here on thousand percent, » read one text message Hayut sent her monday.
« the total amount which he has to be in a position to simply work for a week is simply plenty, » Fjellhoy stated. « It is never ever just a couple of thousand, for us normal people who will be a lot of cash, however for him it isn’t a ton of cash. »
She stated he informed her he needed considerable amounts of cash he needed to book flights and hotels for because he had « an entire team. Fjellhoy said she assumed, as a result of their clothes that are flashy life style, he previously cash and would spend her straight back.
« You did not even think because you were so sure that this guy and the people that you had met was part of the LLD Diamonds and that the money existed, » she said that it was a problem when you were taking up the loans. « as he stated, ‘Everything’s likely to be fine following this ‘ and then it didn’t week. Therefore just ‘one more week’ and then ‘one more week.’ Therefore in the long run you very nearly you did not also recognize just just how much cash you really owed. »
And fundamentally, Fjelljoy stated, she was at love with him.
« this is the most difficult section of it … whenever I understood which he was not who he said he had been, » she stated. « That anyone that we knew and loved, he previously simply done something within the many wicked means. that I was thinking »