"The Tinder Swindler defrauded me of £200,000" | Unscripted

In 2018, Cecilie Fjellhøy swiped right on a dating profile hoping it would change her life forever. And it did. However, instead of finding love she was defrauded of £200,000 by Simon Leviev ,the infamous "Tinder Swindler", - someone she thought would never harm her. Now Cecilie is fighting back, explaining why it is essential governments combat fraud, raising awareness around the devastating impact fraud has on lives and how we can all work to reduce stigma for victims.
Find out about the dangers of fraud: stopthinkfraud...
Watch our Unscripted series: • Unscripted

[@tanianino2578]

She is incredibly brave. I truly hope that she, along with the other victims, can overcome this situation and emerge safely and stronger than ever

[@antonioarc]

A gold digger that was made of a hero 🤣

[@dondamon4669]

Surprised she didn't think he was some kind gangster with people after him

[@pieswps]

It’s brave to talk about this. I respect that she’s putting herself (and past mistakes) out there to warn others. I hope only good things happen for her after this experience.

[@Bor-Time]

Yes that is true and I hope by speaking out about it that it will help her come to terms with it.

[@AbdalMalik-ye1df]

imagine learning a lesson from this gold digger ?

[@superdoobo]

10:04 Because you thought you were going to bag a billionaire but got played. LOL

[@robw2486]

I am appalled by those who seek to blame the victim for the crimes of this appalling man. I am a woman, and I had a 20-year platonic friendship with another woman I met in Church. Over this period she groomed me, and asked for small loans of around £70, which grew to £5,000. I loaned £5,000 to her Mother, who did pay me back. The 'Friend' then asked me to 'Go Guarantor' for a loan for around £70K in credit card debt. I fortunately said NO, but I felt pressured by a friend I had known 20 years, but thank God that I said No. I would have been in financial ruined if I did not feel I could say NO, or wanted to be a good friend. I had a lucky escape.

[@arfriedman4577]

Sorry, You dont loan money without a written legal contract. Its your hard earned money and you dont give away what uou need for yourself. Id tell the lady go to her family or a bank.

[@ChadKaluwa]

When the top 1% guy women are chasing is on a dating app has a master plan. I have no sympathy since i know how these women treat an average guy.

[@superdoobo]

HA! HA! HA! I'd love to buy that guy a beer! 😄

[@robw2486]

Hang on. She may have found him attractive and mysterious. If a sexy slim woman came onto you, would you think she was out of your league?

[@Veda15632]

Even we know how an average guy treats average girls

[@lechoso72]

Women and accountability are like water and oil. She only lent him all that money because she thought she was with a wealthy man. She wouldn't have done that for a regular guy who was starting his business. She also dumped two guys who, in her words, were nice to her. She hopped on a plane with a dude less than 24 hours after meeting him. But hey, it's all on him right?

[@geerenmo]

You've summed up modern western women. One day future people will look back and wonder where it all went wrong.

[@skel760]

⁠@@geerenmoyou mean as opposed to subjugated, eastern women? Don’t get me wrong, this woman is beyond my comprehension. She clicked on the dudes profile because she thought she was hitting the jackpot, but o demean western women as a whole is absurd. “What went wrong”? They won’t allow men to control their lives. Threat them any damn way they please. wtf is wrong with that? If you find that “wrong” , that tells me you’re angry because you cant dominate and control anymore. That’s a pretty weak character.

[@janiceperkins7440]

Really dude…I had a husband who took me for a ride. All that man did was lie - to this day - I don’t know who he really was. He lied about how his prior relationships ended; he lied about what was really important to him. He didn’t lie about his job - we both made good money - and he had a wonderful family that I still miss. How can you make decisions in a relationship when your spouse is a liar - but you don’t even know what is a lie and what’s true?

[@lechoso72]

@@janiceperkins7440 that's your side of the story. How do I know you aren't lying?

[@robw2486]

Hang on judgemental dude. She had two relationships on Tinder which went well, she did not say she dumped them - people are allowed to break up! He conned her, by pretending he was wealthy, and came up with an elaborate scam. She may have lent a regular guy money, but why cannot he make his own, or go to a bank? You are a misogynist.

[@stevenwatsham5973]

He just exploited woman's unrealistic expectations!.. And for gods sake.. Meeting a diamond dealer on Tinder??😂😂😂😂😂

[@DavidStevenGuy]

This was featured on a TV programme called Rip Off Britain today. I thought Cecilie was very brave to speak so frankly.

[@TheUKNutter]

It amazes me how easy women are led on as soon as someone with money gives them attention.

[@TheUKNutter]

@@Jorjayna Those that do end up victims to the tinder swindler.

[@Pimp-ampel]

It amazes me how easily men get carried away with generalizations...but hey, not all men😅

[@seerpou]

he had no money. are you dense?

[@intrepid_rain]

So? And? You can same thing about men.

[@dondamon4669]

​@@seerpou seems like you are dense! She thought he was a millionaire

[@jamesdylan1522]

@1:57 'handsome guy'? he literally is an average guy. You fell for his lifestyle, not his looks. You literally wouldn't look at him for more than 0,5 seconds, if he walked passed you on the streets in regular clothing.

[@Najda007]

How handsom or not someone is is very subjective.

[@jamesdylan1522]

@@Najda007 No it's not actually. Everyone, men AND women would say Adriana Lima in her prime is extremely handsome. For men this would ALWAYS be the same, regardless of status, money and wealth. If prime Adriana Lima would work at McDonalds, she would be just as handsome as if she would be when she was the richest and most famous person in the world. HOWEVER. With women.... it's different. They can overlook the 'handsomeness' when a man is rich, wealthy, famous or has status. That's why you see a lot of rich, old, ugly, bald men, with the hottest young women.

[@Najda007]

@@jamesdylan1522 I know very different women then. I personally run as fast as I can when I realise someone has more money than me. I've met a few people who were really wealthy (through my family) and this is the world a normal person wants to avoid.

[@jamesdylan1522]

@@Najda007 so you're telling me that evolutionary psychologists and the facts that I am stating are wrong? You anecdotal proof, of some exceptions, doesn't change the fact I stated. Since foreverrrrr females always wanted the 'strongest' male. Even before we evolved in to humans. When we were hunter & gatherers and living in caves, the strongest man and/or the man with the most 'power' had the most females. In this day and age 'strongest' doesn't really apply anymore, since everyone can buy a gun and shoot the 'strongest'. But being able to 'provide' still applies VERY MUCH. And to provide for a woman nowadays takes more than just being average Joe. Or are you telling me, all the women you 'know' would settle for a man in his 30's living with his mother, and not having any ambition to do anything in his life? Yes or no?

[@Najda007]

@@jamesdylan1522 I would tell you that it also depends on society. As you also mentioned long time ago men had to be physically strong .... I was born in a country where money was the least important thing, because everything was taken care of. I don't ever remember any girl I knew to be interested in guy's money. Not even one. This was something that I saw later in life on the internet and it seamed unbelievably crazy. It probably came also to my country in the meantime. This is disgusting and connected to internally void consumer society.

[@SomewhereOverTheRainbow2023]

So she love bombed him first! After all, she is “generally good at picking men”. This one was asking for it. There are true victims of love fraudsters but she just strikes me as someone who craved a rich man and now gets attention from what has happened to her 😂 The fraudster probably thought, easy job! If someone already is after money it should be easy to fool them!

[@cheekynandos5888]

I like how the eVisa video has comments turned off cause they know how awful the app design is along with the god awful "beta" website. Waste of taxpayer's money, whoever designed the website and app needs to be fired and blacklisted from developing any software

[@natalic4165]

To go with a stranger to Eastern Europe is crazy!!!!!

[@amazghi]

Greed does more than that 😊

[@arfriedman4577]

Giving him your credit card is giving him cash money. Taking loans for someone you barely know is bonkers. Who gives their hard earned money to strangers they barely know. Get a legal written contract if you lend money. Why your with a guy that says he has people threatening his life.is a red flag to leave the guy alone. Leaving you in Amsterdam was a big red flag. You never heard of stranger danger. Who is crazy to go on a jet from uk to Bulgaria and sleep with the guy? You saw a fantasy on tinder with jet photos. You had no relationship. He used you.

[@Najda007]

His crazyest fake identity was when he claimed he was a mossad agent under cover as a pilot 😂😂😂. As if mossad agents are telling around what they are doing.

[@KuoChiawen05]

I think her revelation is very altruistic since it might prevent others from falling prey to people like Tinder Swindler. You have to consider the inconvenience for her - what kind of guy would seriously conceive a long-term relationship with someone who is in such serious debt? If a guy were rich like Leonardo level, would they go on Tinder? They would just leap over the fashion catalogue of Victoria's Secret to "shop" for their next date. Maybe life was too easy on her and that hubris led her to this. ("I'm always good with picking men") Now she seems to be still in love with that illusion as you could sense sadness in her eyes at the mention of this and she still describes him as "extraordinary" like she is still in love or something.

[@AdventureAttitude]

In all fairness, no one was ever convicted of these alleged things and all those women are looking like socialites considering how much dept they are in... It feels like the roles were reversed for once... Not saying that she wasn't scammed and thus not being brave to speak about, but 200K really?

[@robw2486]

In all fairness, how would you like being lied too, conned, and cheated out of 200K?

[@AdventureAttitude]

@@robw2486 well I would NEVER been so gullible. You said yourself that you said NO to a heftly loan...

[@archiemustachie3693]

She's a gold digger who got conned 😂

[@SarahD19887]

How is she not embarrassed. You couldn't waterboard this out of me.

[@Pimp-ampel]

Maybe because it‘s a strength to admit mistakes of the past! Everyone makes them, some more than others, but stating stupid comments like yours highlights another form of naiveté! Hope you get over it as she did…and maybe you learn one day to be more compassionate towards other people!

[@AbdalMalik-ye1df]

you are jealous of her and her billionaire diamond dealer boyfriend !

[@SarahD19887]

​@@Pimp-ampelshe might have said she made mistakes but there's no accountability whatsoever. She keeps shifting blame to everything and everyone (him, laws, social media, banks, her support net) to dodge accountability for her actions.

[@TheUKNutter]

@@SarahD19887 Maybe she knows she’s a gold digger and is ashamed of it.

[@Najda007]

​@@TheUKNuttergold diggers don't fall in love and don't pay bills to anybody. He just knew how to attract with exciting life, some cliche attentions, he evoked their motherly protective instincts, and also gave them impression that there will be no problem getting money back. Everything was very well thought through. If you think you couldn't fall for a scam it means you should brace yourself for a surprise.

[@IsasRgues]

🤔🌺Thank you for bei ng here! They are now more unstable because they have no idea about what the Police is doing... 🤔. I really appreciate your presence here, Just in case that you're still alone, them you're no longer alone...

[@superdoobo]

10:29 The face of an alpha widow!

[@CptSlow89]

She doesn't have instagram or Facebook anymore?

[@superdoobo]

13:26 You would have just said they are jealous!

[@mia.oros.realtor28]

200k? never tough about a brain transplant? at least a vacation instead of sending those money to the failed frog replica?

[@larcm3]

So he basically does to modern women what they want to do to him

[@AbdalMalik-ye1df]

How much money did you make selling your I mean telling your "STORY" ?

[@Najda007]

One would hope enough to get some money back

[@skel760]

Exactly. She actually set up a go fund me to get back the money she *chose* to give a man she didn’t know, a man she thought was her golden ticket. And the suckers bail her out. She also committed fraud for this douche she had only seen 2x and met 6 weeks before. Unbelievable.

[@AbdalMalik-ye1df]

I don't believe this story, sorry. it is too many inconsistencies

[@clasyinfo]

I agree with you

[@HerbChao14xs]

Nah, she's telling the truth. If you watch the Netflix Movie you can tell it's genuine. The thing she needs to realize for herself though is how high of a standard she's set (at the time she made the Documentary she had 1024 matches; you honestly can't tell me out 1024 guys she couldn't find at least 10 worth giving a first date too and maybe pick one; heck she could've gone poly with 10 and have her needs taken care of for the rest of her life). So I sort of go between holding Simon accountable (he's clearly a socialpath and serial liar) but the 3 victims from the Special were complacent to an extent too). Fortunately all 3 have been able to find some closure and I know the 2nd woman eventually married and had a kid; the 3rd one (Ilene?) not sure where she is but she can def find a man too. #TinderSwindler #whenMoneyFeelsTooReal #loveBombers #SimonLeviev

[@AbdalMalik-ye1df]

@@clasyinfo thank you friend. I think this whole fake scam is just a plot to get money from the public. Why would she just be so el stupido it makes no sense. NO ONE is that EL stupidO, come on