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Kate Konlin and Simon Leviev (February 2022): "He was obsessed with me"
In February 2022, Kate Konlin gave an interview.
She looked into the camera, sitting next to her was Simon Leviev, a convicted fraudster.
Protagonist of a Netflix documentary and extensive research, also by SPIEGEL.
An imposter who cheated women out of a lot of money.
Who is globally notorious as a Tindler swindler.
All of this was known at the time.
But Kate Konlin said, "My God, how could someone make up such a fake story?" When the reporter asked if Leviev ever borrowed money from her, Konlin laughed.
"Of course not."
Today, almost a year later, the Ukrainian-Israeli model speaks of "emotional abuse" in an interview with the BBC.
Leviev owes her $150,000.
He called her a "liar" to the BBC.
Konlin says the two met on Instagram in 2020.
They got together within a few weeks.
In the beginning it was an intense love affair.
"He was obsessed with me." He accompanied her to model shoots and waited for her there, cleaned her apartment.
But then he started criticizing her looks, her clothes, her acne.
She lost her self-confidence.
"It was like walking on eggshells."
Leviev started asking her for money.
Thousands of dollars, a total of $150,000, Konlin claims.
According to the BBC, she was already an internationally successful model, appearing on the covers of magazines such as Vogue, Grazia and Wallpaper.
She was financially secure, Leviev knew that, says Konlin.
She provided more than a dozen voice messages to the BBC.
In it, writes the BBC, he often screams.
Asks for credit, claiming his money is tied up in investments.
He once yelled, "Kate, I'm a millionaire!
And that's a fact.
I'm in a bind at the moment.
Do you understand?
I am stuck!
Do you understand that in your messed up brain?
Your bird brain." And further: "I didn't steal it from you.
You gave it to me of your own free will.
You lent it to me.'
According to SPIEGEL research, Leviev stole at least one million euros from women, and Netflix even reported ten million US dollars.
Konlin says she watched the Netflix documentary while sitting next to him on the sofa.
She knew it was all true.
So why did she stay with him?
reported
She felt compelled to believe his version of events.
It was a relationship dominated by him.
It was easy for him to persuade her to defend him publicly.
The two had been together for 18 months.
They separated after an argument in which he became violent.
You have filed a complaint.
Leviev denies the allegation to the BBC.
To this day he tries to profit from his dubious fame.
You can book video messages with him via an app, starting at a price of 92 US dollars.
The app has 189 mostly positive reviews.
jpz
