Fake German heiress Anna “Delvey” Sorokin will be released on house arrest from an ICE detention centre.
Ms Sorokin, whose story garnered worldwide attention after it became the subject of Netflix’s hit series Inventing Anna, has been granted a $10,000 bond, the Daily Beast reported. Her attorney told the outlet that Delvey had yet to be released because she had not posted the money.
Delvey, 31, successfully conned friends and big banks out of hundreds of thousands of dollars before she was convicted in 2019 of fraud and grand larceny and sentenced to between four and 12 years in prison.
After paying back her victims, Delvey was briefly released in February 2021 before she was arrested by ICE for overstaying her visa.
In a ruling Judge Charles Conroy said that it was precisely Delevy’s status “as a public figure” that made it difficult for her to avoid detention, and what partially convinced the court that her “risk of flight [is] sufficiently mitigated,” filings obtained by the Daily Beast state.
Judge Conroy also said that Delvey had demonstrated “interest in pursuing legitimate employment in the United States, pursuits that will face heavy public scrutiny.”
Delvey will be in 24-hour confinement at her chosen residence while her immigration proceedings are finalised. She has also been banned from using social media.
“We are extremely gratified by the court’s decision today to release Anna Sorokin. The judge rightfully recognized that Anna is not a danger to the community,” Delvey’s attorney, Duncan Levin, told the Daily Beast.
“While there are still a few hurdles to jump through on her release conditions, Anna is thrilled to be getting out so she can focus on appealing her wrongful conviction.”
At her trial in 2019, Sorokin was found guilty of scamming more than $200,000 (£147,000) from hotels, banks and other institutions. She disguised herself as a German heiress in order to swindle large sums from associates and friends.
The Russian-born con artist’s story was dramatised in the Netflix series. Insider reported Netflix paid Delvey $320,000, but her funds were frozen and used to pay her victims.
