For whatever reason, shows about swindlers and scam artists are incredibly popular right now. Maybe it’s our strange fascination with a trainwreck story or the fact that we feel like we could easily be the victim in these situations. It might also be that we’re curious how people fall for these scenarios.
Whatever your motivation, watching some of the popular swindler hits right now will make you think twice before you go out with someone you meet online.
You’re probably likely to develop a few trust issues and want to do a background check on everyone once you watch them, but they also make for fascinating entertainment.
The following are six shows about scammers to watch now.
1. The Tinder Swindler
It could be said that The Tinder Swindler actually started the scammer trend on TV. The documentary was released on Netflix in February, and it’s about the story of Simon Leviev, who was born Shimon Hayut. Simon is Israeli and used the dating app Tinder to connect with people.
Then, once he connected, he would emotionally manipulate them and get them to send money to support his lavish lifestyle.
Simon would tell his victims he needed money to escape from his enemies.
Simon was presenting himself as the son of Lev Leviev, a Russian-Israeli diamond mogul.
Simon would trick victims into giving him money as a loan, with no intention to repay it. He would charm women by taking them on private jets and using money to buy them gifts from women he’d conned in the past. Then, he would pretend to be targeted by his enemies, sending the same messages to all the women he was talking to.
2. Inventing Anna
Inventing Anna is a Netflix limited series starring Julia Garner of Ozark and Anna Chlumsky from Veep. The series is created by Shonda Rhimes of Scandal.
Inventing Anna follows the twists and turns of Anna Sorokin, who went by the name Anna Delvey. It’s based on an article published in New York called “How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People.”
Anna Sorokin was born in Russia and using the name Anna Delvey and a created persona, she was able to con people in New York City. She convinced people she was a German heiress and would eventually have access to a large fortune. Using the persona, Sorokin is able to get hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, goods, and services. Her ultimate goal was to open an art-themed club, somewhat like the real Soho House.
3. Operation Varsity Blues
Operation Varsity Blues is on Netflix and focuses on the 2019 college admissions bribery scandal. There is a combination of reenactments and interviews with people who were actually involved in the scandal.
Released in March 2021, the documentary was one of the ten most watched films on Netflix.
The documentary is based on the largest collect admissions scheme ever prosecuted by the Department of Justice, and it involved actors like Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin.
Parents were spending anywhere from tens of thousands of dollars to millions to get their children accepted into the nation’s top colleges and universities. The $15 million scam got a huge amount of media attention, and many felt it highlighted the fact that the wealthy in America can play by a different set of rules than everyone else.
The move especially looks at William “Rick” Singer, who was at the center of the scam. He was a basketball coach who then became a college counselor, helping parents cheat the admission system through bribery of test proctors and college coaches.
4. The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley
The 2019 documentary was produced by HBO Documentary Films and Jigsaw Productions, having premiered in 2019. The Inventor follows the rise and fall of Elizabeth Holmes. Throughout, the story also includes actual footage of Holmes and her COO making big claims about their company Theranos and the value it would provide.
Holmes and the COO Sunny Balwani appeared more interested in promotion and marketing in the media as opposed to their technology actually working.
At one point, Theranos was praised as a breakthrough in health technology. The company raised more than $700 million from private investors and venture capitalists, leading to a $10 billion valuation at its peak in 2013-14. The claim was that the company had devised blood tests requiring small amounts of blood to do rapid, accurate testing. They said they used compact automated devices to test blood, which they’d developed. The claims were proven false later.
Theranos, Holmes, and Balwani were charged with fraud by the SEC in 2018. Holmes and Balwani were also charged with wire fraud and conspiracy.
Holmes was found guilty on four counts at the start of 2022.
5. Bad Vegan: Fame. Fraud. Fugitives.
The 2022 docuseries from Netflix tells the story of a popular New York restaurant owner, Sarma Melngallis. She is said to have been illegally transferring money to her husband so he’d pay a deity to give them immortality.
Melngallis was the former owner of Pure Food and Wine, a New York City vegan eatery that was a favorite among celebrities.
Melngallis met Anthon Strangis, a conman who went by the name Shane Fox. She says he convinced her to steal money from her own restaurant and eventually run from authorities. The two were ultimately charged with transferring more than $1.6 million from the restaurant to their personal accounts.
6. The Puppet Master: Hunting the Ultimate Conman
Finally, The Puppet Master is a British docuseries from Netflix that focuses on the search for Robert Hendy-Freegard. In the docuseries, viewers are taken through the story of Hendy-Freegard, who went by the name David Hendy. He pretended to be an MI5 agent while working as a car salesman and bartender.
Hendy was able to hide his identity and steal money from people for more than two decades in various ways. The series got mostly positive reviews, with many describing it as both unbelievable and unforgettable.
