Christine Quinn Home Targeted by Home Invasion Robbers
"Selling Sunset" star Christine Quinn narrowly escaped violent intruders early Friday ... and what saved them is some sturdy glass.
Christine, her husband, Christian Richards, and their son were sound asleep when they were awakened by some noise outside the house.
They apparently didn't see anything when they peered outside, but when they checked their security footage they were horrified to see 2 armed people trying to break in through a window.
What saved them from a home invasion robbery -- triple-pane glass that just wouldn't crack.
They called 911 and cops got there in minutes, but the robbers escaped.
Christine lives in the Hollywood Hills above the Sunset Strip. That area, along with others in the L.A. area, have been hit hard by crime over the last year.
Christine says the window the robbers were trying to break was 4 feet from her bedroom. She says it was the most horrifying moment of her life.
Glad they're safe.
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'Tinder Swindler' Simon Leviev Turnabout's Not Fair Play!!! I Just got Swindled!!!
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The tables have turned on 'Tinder Swindler' Simon Leviev ... he was bamboozled himself in an Instagram scam.
Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ … Simon was hit up last Thursday by a verified female on Instagram. She claimed she'd help Simon and GF Kate Konlin get verified on the app through her BF -- saying he worked at Meta, Mark Zuckerberg's tech company that owns IG.
The alleged swindlers went to great lengths to pull this off ... Simon Facetimed the BF, who was in a busy office -- appearing like he was at Meta, with employees walking around behind him.
The fake "Metamate" said the only way he could give him the blue check on his profile -- as well as delete the fake accounts under his name -- would be to offer up a big chunk of change ... $6,664. The payments were sent via PayPal through 2 separate transactions -- one for him and one for his GF.
Shortly after, Simon's manager found the deal suspicious and reached out to an actual team member at Meta, who told them they don't charge for verifications. Before anyone could call out the swindlers, they completely scrubbed themselves from the Internet -- including removal of their IG accounts ... letting the swindlers walk away with the cash.
Simon allegedly swindled countless women out of more than $10 million through Tinder ... ghosting them once he got what he wanted. Since then, he's had "enemies" after him -- most recently a criminal court complaint against him from the true Leviev family, which he has no real part in.
Simon did get verified on Instagram Tuesday afternoon -- by legit means, of course -- after his manager reached out to Meta to get it done.
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'Tinder Swindler' Simon Leviev Fake Family Files Criminal Complaint Against him ... You're Not Tied to Our Diamond Fortune!!!
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12:39 PM PT -- A rep for Simon tells TMZ, "Simon believes the family is just trying to insert themselves in the narrative for publicity after the show’s success. Simon also legally changed his name in 2015 and looks forward to this getting thrown out in court."
Simon Leviev -- AKA the "Tinder Swindler" -- is now in the crosshairs of the extremely wealthy diamond-titan family that he pretended to be a part of ... they've just filed a criminal court complaint against him.
Guy Ophir -- lawyer for the true Leviev family -- says charges were filed Monday morning in Israel against Simon, telling us justice must be served for the malice brought against the Leviev name.
The legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- outline the ways in which Simon allegedly took advantage of the family, including most notably changing his name from Shimon Yehuda Hayut to Simon Leviev to give the appearance of wealth ... Simon claimed to be a part of a wealthy family, with ties to the diamond industry.
Ophir tells TMZ ... according to Israel law, only the state can file criminal charges ... but there is an exception to the rule -- in cases of "Malice Defamation" like this one.
In these cases, the person that was hurt can file a private criminal charge and ask for criminal punishment. By using the Leviev family name, Ophir claims Simon committed malice defamation and malice invasion of privacy.
He says this is the first step in an "all-out legal war" that the family's instructed him to unleash against Simon and everyone that will join venture with him -- past, present and future.
Ophir mentions, "The Leviev family intend[s] to donate the money that they will receive to all the victims of his crimes."
We have reached out to Simon's team ... so far no word back.
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'Tinder Swindler' Simon Leviev Charging $20K for Club Gig ... Wants Jets & Suites Too!!!
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Simon Leviev is an expensive habit -- as several European women will attest -- and now he's got nightclubs lining up to hand him up to $20K just to pop bottles and party.
Leviev is now infamous from the Netflix documentary 'Tinder Swindler,' and becoming a household name -- even for negative reasons -- means some hot spot clubs are looking to book him for appearances.
Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ … Simon has several offers from clubs in Philly, Boston, Germany and Mexico, and he's at least interested, because his team responded with a laundry list of demands.
We're told he's asking for the $20,000 payday, plus bottle service ... but it doesn't stop there. Leviev's also requesting a private jet, suite at a 5-star hotel, black SUV car service and 2 full-time security guards.
Basically, he wants the same lifestyle his alleged victims say he pretended to have while he duped them into handing over millions of dollars. As we reported, Simon was recently shopping for Ferraris ... so, he's for sure, leaning into the image he portrayed in 'Swindler.'
You'll recall, the doc claims he bilked women out of more than $10 mil by gaining their trust on Tinder.
Ya gotta wonder if he really has Ferrari money now, but if not, he's now trying to get it legitimately ... if the nightclubs will bite.
Important to note he's also been blowing up on Cameo recently ... charging $200 per video and reportedly making $30K in just 3 days.
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Earthquake New Special's a Game Changer!!! All Thanks to Dave Chappelle
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Stand-up comedian Earthquake has the biggest platform of his more than 30-year career, and he's giving Dave Chappelle all the props for giving him the big break.
Earthquake joined us Tuesday on "TMZ Live" to talk more about his upcoming special, "Legendary" ... the first of Dave's 4-part series, "Chappelle's Home Team." He told us, he's flattered Dave "reached back" to give comedians like himself such a huge opportunity to reach a wider audience.
Of course, Dave sparked lots of controversy for Netflix last year after his special, "The Closer," pissed off LGBTQ+ groups and some employees at the streaming service.
Rather than shying away, Netflix is capitalizing on its relationship with Dave ... and Earthquake and other comedians are benefitting. Earthquake says it all started with a surprising call -- which he thought was a prank -- from Netflix execs.
Chappelle won't be doing any stand-up specials this time around, but he is executive producing all of them and recording intros for the comedians. BTW, Earthquake gave us some insider intel about the other comedians who will be featured.
His special drops Feb. 28, or as Chappelle puts it ... "Tune in the last day of Black History Month so we can make one last day of history.”
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'Tinder Swindler' Simon's Bodyguard Issues Demand ... Apologize Now, Netflix!!!
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The so-called "Tinder Swindler" isn’t the only one who got a bad rep from the Netflix documentary -- his bodyguard thinks he did too, and now he's threatening legal action.
If you’ve seen the doc, you know we’re talking about Piotr -- who was prominently featured as the personal security guard for Simon Leviev ... and some people think the doc makes it seem like he was in on Leviev's alleged scams.
That’s what’s he and his team are saying anyway -- and they think it's hurt Piotr's reputation and ability to work, so they’ve fired off a cease-and-desist letter to Netflix. Much like Simon dealing with one of his GFs ... they have a lot of demands.
In the letter, obtained by TMZ, attorney Joanna Parafianowicz says she wants Netflix to yank the 'Swindler' doc altogether.
Not just that, she's demanding Netflix publish an apology to Piotr on its official websites.
Of course ... Piotr is also asking for money due to what he characterizes as irreparable harm to his reputation and career. All in all, he's asking for 5 million Euros (about $5.6 mil).
His rationale for all this is ... Netflix never got permission to use his image or likeness, nor did it include his side of things. Piotr’s attorney says the current depiction of him as it stands -- namely, that he knew what Simon was doing -- is completely false. They insist Piotr was completely out of the loop on that front.
Parafianowicz has already publicly threatened a lawsuit in the wake of ‘Swindler’ blowing up as a huge streaming hit ... but now, she’s putting it in writing.
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'Tinder Swindler' Simon Leviev Still Ballin' (Or So It Seems) ... Goes Ferrari Shopping!!!
These new pics of Simon Leviev make ya think -- somewhere a woman is crying about losing a big stack o' money, 'cause the guy's perusing super pricey sports cars in his native Israel!!!
The so-called 'Tinder Swindler' -- the title of the Netflix documentary about Simon -- was spotted on the prowl over the weekend in Tel Aviv at a luxury dealership, and naturally ... he was checking out Ferraris.
As you can see, SL rolled up in an SUV with what appear to be bodyguards trailing behind -- protection from his "enemies," no doubt -- and wearing a Gucci jacket worth thousands.
But that's nothing compared to the whips he's eyeballing! Some of the Ferrari models in his sights, including a 296 GTB, which go for as high as $250,000 MSRP. And not only did Simon take a good hard look at the exteriors, but he actually got inside at least one of 'em to get a feel from the inside.
From the outside looking in, Simon would definitely seem to be rolling in the dough to be able to shop for a prancing horse.
We should note -- for the sake of any impressionable women seeing this -- that Simon did NOT cruise away in any of the cars.
Considering his history of alleged fraud -- the documentary claims he bilked women out of more than $10 mil -- you gotta wonder if this is all just for show, or if he's legit rich.
We do know he's got a new gig with Cameo ... but let's be real, that ain't Ferrari money! As they say, fake it 'til you make it.
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'Tinder Swindler' Simon Leviev I'm Making Legit Money Now on Cameo!!!
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Simon Leviev, aka "The Tinder Swindler," is saying goodbye to scamming women and has just scored an actual paying job ... this time, he's making money being his real self on Cameo.
Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... the 'Tinder Swindler' joined the site Tuesday and got a wave of requests from fans to make messages. We're told he made $30K within his first 3 days, charging $200 a pop for personal video and $2k per video for businesses.
Folks have requested everything from birthday shoutouts to pep talks, happy anniversary videos, and more. He says in his profile he's excited to be on Cameo to wish folks whatever they need. In a few videos, he jokes his enemies are after him.
If you haven't seen it, Simon's the focus of a new Netflix doc, "The Tinder Swindler" ... accused of scamming women in shocking fashion out of a fortune. It was like a Ponzi scheme, where he'd take money from one woman and use it to impress the next before he took money from her. In all, he pilfered around $10 million.
He was arrested in 2019, and spent 5 months in jail for fraud, but is obviously out now ... and making SOME money legally.
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Dave Chappelle More Netflix Comedy Coming ... 4 New Dave-Produced Specials
Netflix is turning the page from Dave Chappelle's 'Closer' controversy by staying in business ... with Dave Chappelle, and rolling out new comedy specials with his fingerprint all over 'em.
Dave and the streaming platform announced a new standup comedy series Friday called, "Chappelle's Home Team" ... which will focus on comics handpicked by DC himself. The first of 4 episodes are set to drop February 28, featuring Earthquake.
Remember, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos refused to remove "The Closer" last year when LGBTQ groups, and others, accused Chappelle of transphobia and staged several protests at Netflix HQ.
Sarandos said the company fully supported all comedians' right to express themselves ... and stood by Dave. The new specials are proof positive of that continued partnership, which has been extremely profitable for both parties.
He's released 10 standup specials on Netflix since 2016 and, by some reports, has made north of $200 mil.
While Dave won't be doing standup in the new specials, he is executive producing them and will do the introductions. After Earthquake, who's opened for Dave on the road, the 2nd episode features Donnell Rawlings, another one of DC's close friends.
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'Tiger King' JEFF LOWE & WIFE COP PLEA DEALS Close Out Drunk Driving Cases
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'Tiger King' star Jeff Lowe and his wife just copped plea deals in their drunk driving case ... and they will NOT serve any time behind bars.
Prosecutors in Oklahoma tell TMZ ... Jeff and Lauren Lowe each pled no contest to a misdemeanor charge of DWI and will pay a fine and court costs to put the incident behind them.
We're told there will be no jail time or probation for either Jeff or Lauren ... with prosecutors saying this is a typical outcome for these types of cases in Oklahoma City.
TMZ broke the story ... Jeff and Lauren were busted back in June after cops pulled them over in a white Range Rover. Police said they were both driving before the bust, which is why both were ultimately hit with the charge.
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The Lowe's defense attorney, Joshua C. Smith, tells TMZ ... the couple is happy with the outcome of the case, while admitting to making some mistakes that night.
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'TINDER SWINDLER' SIMON LEVIEV I Can Make it in Hollywood ... Trust Me!!!
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Simon Leviev is looking to turn his "Tinder Swinder" fame into a legit career, because he wants to break into Hollywood.
Sources close to Simon tell TMZ ... he's already signed with a talent manager, and wants to write a book, star on a dating show and host a dating podcast. Yeah, no shocker ... the guy's got big plans.
Simon's new Hollywood manager is Gina Rodriguez with Gitoni Inc, and we're told they've already discussed a bunch of plans to parlay his newfound Netflix fame into profit and an entertainment career.
We're told Simon's idea for a potential dating show includes women competing for his love ... and he's interested in sharing dating dos and don'ts on a potential podcast.
As you know ... Simon's the subject of the new Netflix documentary in which women -- and law enforcement -- claim he flaunted a lavish lifestyle to women on Tinder, and once he got them hooked, he would convince them to "loan" him money.
When they did, he'd ghost them and allegedly make off with their dough.
Almost like a Ponzi scheme, the Netflix doc claims Simon would use one woman's funds to wine and dine the next, and so on. All told, Simon allegedly swindled over $10 million from his alleged victims before his 2019 arrest.
So, why in the world would anyone trust him -- in or out of Hollywood???
Our sources say Simon is claiming the Netflix show got him all wrong, and he's looking to clear his name. It'll be an uphill battle, for sure -- but as you know if you've seen 'Swindler' -- that's never stopped him before.
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Kanye West Brings Kim K Look-Alike to 'Jeen-Yuhs' Biopic Screening
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Kanye West showed up Friday night for a screening of the Netflix doc on his life ... and there was no Julia Fox, no Kim Kardashian, but there WAS someone else.
Ye showed up at L.A.'s new hot spot -- Mother Wolf restaurant -- with Chaney Jones to watch the new Netflix show, "Jeen-Yuhs," who lots of folks say has jacked Kim's look. Lots of celebs showed up for the screening, including DaBaby, Taraji P. Henson, Quavo, Roddy Ricch and Jason Lee.
Kanye was chill, wearing a black leather jacket and a hoodie. He took a bunch of photos with guests and chatted everyone up.
As for Chaney ... she wore the Kardashian-esque super-tight bodysuit, along with gloves, boots and yes, black sunglasses.
Kanye's still waiting for Billie Eilish to apologize for supposedly shading his pal, Travis Scott, at her concert last week. The apology isn't coming, because Billie has talked about stopping shows when someone is in distress long before the Astroworld tragedy. Ye says if she doesn't apologize, he won't headline at Coachella.
Stay tuned ...
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'MY UNORTHODOX LIFE' Julia Haart's Ex Sues Her for $850k ... Now She's Firing Back!!!
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7:11 PM PT -- According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Julia takes aim at Scaglia's history of what she alleges were several failed businesses -- including one called La Perla, in which she claims he invested $450 million, and turned around and sold it for just $1 million.
Julia claims she never had an official salary during her 3 years as CEO at Elite, and the company was poised to generate it's highest ever gross revenues in 2022.
4:58 PM PT -- Julia's camp just fired back at her estranged husband, claiming the account in question is a joint account ... and claiming it's the same place her hubby pulled funds from to pay his divorce lawyers.
JH's attorney, Marty Singer, tells TMZ ... "The claims against Julia Haart are not based in fact and an attempt for Silvio Scaglia to take the attention off of his own history of failed investments, ( La Perla, Babelgum, Yewno). In fact, the company still owned by Scaglia that has any value is the company that was run by Haart, who took over the operations of the business and as a result, its valuation has increased over 5 times from $90 million to $500 million."
Singer adds ... "The account that is the basis of a lawsuit is a jointly owned account, and the same account that Mr. Scaglia used to pay his own divorce lawyers. Earlier today Julia filed an action in the Delaware Court of Chancery to address the actions taken by Mr. Scaglia, including her unauthorized purported termination."
Julia Haart, the star of Netflix's "My Unorthodox Life," is getting dragged into court by her estranged hubby ... who claims she made off with $850k from a company account.
Silvio Scaglia and Freedom Holding Inc. are suing Julia ... claiming she misappropriated the funds after finding out she was going to be dismissed as the CEO at Elite World Group.
Silvio runs EWG, a subsidiary of Freedom Holding, and in a lawsuit, he says she made the huge withdrawal on Tuesday, the day after finding out she was getting the ax.
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It's interesting ... the alleged withdrawal went down the day before Julia filed to divorce Silvio after 3 years of marriage.
In docs, obtained by TMZ, Silvio claims he gave Julia a 50% stake in Freedom Holding back in 2019, and she became the CEO of EWG that same year ... a job that gave her access to the company bank account.
Julia's ex claims they met in January to discuss company finances and agreed to place limits on what she could withdraw ... no more than $250k to cover a mortgage, rent and living expenses, and he claims she took out $250k shortly after that agreement was made.
Silvio says EWG sent a letter to Julia outlining reasons for her dismissal, and it cites an alleged increase in costs and expenses beyond the budget. It also blames Haart for the company's failure to raise new money.
Silvio claims Julia swiped the money as retaliation for getting fired, and he's suing to get back the $850k, plus damages.
We reached out to Julia ... so far, no word back.
Originally Published -- 9:37 AM PT
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'Cheer' Star Jerry Harris Pleads Guilty in Child Porn Case
3:09 PM PT -- Jerry's attorneys released a statement on his behalf, saying he wants to "take responsibility for his actions and publicly convey his remorse for the harm he has caused the victims in this case." They go on to say that Jerry himself was sexually abused while competing in cheer as a child, so "that perversely made him believe that this sexual conduct was normal when it's not."
His lawyers say he's been in therapy and mental health treatment behind bars. They say by pleading guilty, "Jerry will spend the rest of his life making amends for what he has done."
Jerry Harris has pleaded guilty in his child pornography case .... TMZ has learned.
The "Cheer" star was in Chicago Federal court Thursday where he entered the plea to 2 charges -- receiving child porn using interstate commerce and traveling over state lines with intent to illicit sexual conduct with a minor.
Harris had been under investigation by the FBI for allegedly soliciting minors for sex back in May 2019. The feds say Jerry requested sexually inappropriate photos from teen boys, which they sent to him.
The judge told Harris sentencing guidelines call for him to get up to 50 years in prison -- but it's ultimately up to the judge who will announce Harris' sentence in a June 28 hearing.
Jerry rose to fame in Season 1 of the popular Netflix series ... but things quickly took a turn for the worse, when he was arrested in Illinois for child pornography in Sept. 2020.
According to the criminal complaint, Jerry was 19 at the time and the alleged victims were 13.
The feds claim the teens' parents say Harris had contacted both of them online and repeatedly asked for pornographic photos and videos.
Harris allegedly started contacting the boys back in December of 2018.
The alleged victims provided law enforcement with screenshots of exchanges with Harris via Snapchat and text messages, among other evidence.
Harris was ultimately charged with producing child pornography. He's still dealing with a civil lawsuit from the 2 alleged victims ... who claim he groomed them into sending the nude photos and he demanded sexual acts.
Originally Published -- 12:14 PM PT
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'Tinder Swindler' Simon Leviev Banned From Other Dating Apps ... Out Of Options Now!!!
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Simon Leviev -- aka the "Tinder Swindler" -- is gonna have a hard time finding new victims on dating apps ... because he's been booted from just about everywhere!
A rep for Match Group -- owners of OkCupid, Hinge, PlentyofFish, OurTime, Meetic, Pairs, and Match -- tells TMZ that Simon has been permanently banned from all of their properties ... leaving him out of options when it comes to scamming women.
The rep says he violated the terms of service at Tinder and therefore the other partner companies will also not allow him to create a profile on the other apps.
As we reported ... a Tinder spokesperson told us Simon -- and his many aliases -- would no longer be allowed to open an account on their platform, as he violated their terms of service ... specifically, impersonation and asking for money.
According to the new documentary, Simon would show off his lavish lifestyle to women on Tinder, in hopes of getting their trust and affection. Once hooking them, he'd convince them to "loan" him money ... before he ghosted and made off with their cash.
Much like a Ponzi scheme, the documentary claims he'd use one woman's money to impress the next, and so on. All in all, he allegedly took more than $10 million from his victims.
He was eventually arrested in 2019 and sent back to Israel, where he was released after just 5 months in prison.
The Match Group rep says he currently doesn’t have a profile on their dating apps under any of his known aliases, but if he tries to create one, he will be removed. Good luck scamming now!
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'Too Hot To Handle' Harry Jowsey I'm Not Dating Khloe ... But I Want To!!!
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Harry Jowsey is backing Khloe Kardashian who has already shot down rumors the two are dating ... but that doesn't mean he's opposed to hooking up with her.
We got the "Too Hot To Handle" star at Pressed Juicery in L.A. and asked about the dating buzz.
Harry says the online sleuths have it twisted ... explaining how the Bentley he was driving around with flowers in the passenger seat was not meant for Khloe, as many assumed.
In reality, Harry says the Bentley was more of a test drive and the bouquet was for his "queens" at Netflix ... the streaming platform that made him famous with last year's reality dating show.
The Harry-Khloe dating rumors were also based around alleged DMs between them ... but Harry says that was a one-way street, and he actually deleted the DM he sent Khloe a while ago, because he was embarrassed about his pickup line.
The reality check is sure to bum out those who thought there was something brewing ... but Harry says he would absolutely date Khloe if given the chance.
It's a fun conversation ... and he tells us what a potential first date might look like, and what nickname he might give Khloe if they ever become an item for real.