Brazen fake heiress Anna Sorokin stages photoshoot at grotty Manhattan walk-up
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Fake German heiress Anna Sorokin makes the most of her time from house arrest as she poses for the camera in a dingy Manhattan apartment, where she will stay while battling deportation.
The convicted fraudster, 31, who identified herself as Anna Delvey, spent the past 18 months in ICE custody in a New York state prison until she was released late Friday.
Sorokin was convicted in 2019 of defrauding $275,000 from banks, hotels and upscale New Yorkers to fund her luxurious lifestyle.
She’s sporting now an ankle monitor and is confined to her new home in the East Village — where a photo shoot seemed to be taking place over the weekend.
Fake German heiress Anna Sorokin, 31, poses for a film crew in the window of her new East Village apartment, where she is under house arrest after being released from an upstate prison
Sorokin is photographed by a crew on the fire escape of her East Village apartment
Sorokin was convicted in 2019 of cheating $275,000 from banks, hotels and upscale New Yorkers to fund her luxurious lifestyle
Shortly after arriving at her apartment, Sorokin sat down for an interview with the… New York Times and told how she felt.
‘I’m very happy. Nothing was guaranteed,’ she began. “They have refused bail before. It was an exercise in perseverance. So many immigration attorneys told me that I would be deported to Mars before going to New York. And I just had to find the person who would fit my vision, not take ‘no’ for an answer and make it happen.”
The one-bedroom apartment that had been jammed up by her lawyer, Sorokin said, was sparsely furnished, along with a few facility garbage bags filled with her immigration documents.
“I could have left, but I chose not to because I’m trying to fix what I’ve done wrong,” she said. “I have so much history in New York and I felt like if I was in Europe I would run from something. But if the prison doesn’t prove people wrong, then what will?’
When asked by The Times what’s next, Sorokin exclaimed, “I don’t know. I will have to do so many things. I’m really excited right now, so it’s pretty hard to sleep. I mean, you guys, I literally just got out of jail!’
And on Saturday, Sorokin already looked like she was working on her future plans — with a photo shoot on her East Village pad.
She was spotted posing in one of the windows while photographers sat on a fire escape trying to get the right angle.
Other shots showed the thug high on the roof, looking down at the New Yorkers below.
On Saturday, Sorokin was photographed high on the roof of her East Village apartment, looking down at the New Yorkers below her.
A photographer snaps as Sorokin poses at his new apartment in East Village
She was also seen posing in one of the windows while photographers sat on a fire escape trying to get the right angle
The one-bedroom apartment in the East Village was jammed by her lawyer, Sorokin . said
Sorokin’s lawyers successfully appealed to a judge on Wednesday to release her.
US immigration judge Charles Conroy agreed and placed her under house arrest, because “she has expressed an interest in pursuing legitimate work in the United States, pursuits that will receive heavy public scrutiny.”
But the release was delayed because arrangements were made to pay bail.
Judge Conroy said that because Sorokin, 31, is notorious, it would be difficult for her to fly under the radar and avoid detection.
She will have to abide by release conditions imposed by both the New York State Parole Board and the immigration authorities, which, combined with her status as a public figure, will make it extremely difficult to avoid detection.
For all these reasons, the court is of the opinion that [Sorokin’s] flight risk adequately mitigated,” he said in his statement.
Sorokin’s immigration attorney John Sandweg said in a statement: “Immigration detention should be reserved for those who pose a danger to society or an unmanageable flight risk.
“We are pleased that after 17 months in immigration detention and years after she ended her prison sentence, the court recognized that such detention was no longer appropriate for Ana.
“Make no mistake, she doesn’t get a free pass,” Sandweg added. She will face deportation proceedings and her release will be closely monitored by the government.
‘Still, the court ruled that continued detention was not necessary.’
Sorokin wants to stay in the US, despite not having a visa. She is originally from Russia, but also has ties to Germany.
The convicted fraudster, who has spent the past 18 months in ICE custody, was led out of Orange County jail Friday and transported to Manhattan.
Sorokin was bundled up in a white van that sped out of a prison back door to avoid waiting media. The angle of her glasses can be seen in the back seat
She became famous in 2018 after she was arrested for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars in luxury hotels and restaurants in Manhattan.
Her crimes later became the subject of the hit Netflix series “Inventing Anna.”
Sorokin has been busy behind bars with multiple media and podcast interviews.
She auctions off her prison sketches and also writes poetry.
She wrote a piece for DailyMail.com last month complaining that the US immigration system is broken, saying she spent 18 months “in the pit of the US immigration system.”
Sorokin’s immigration attorney John Sandweg said in a statement: “Immigration detention should be reserved for those who pose a danger to society or an unmanageable flight risk.
“Make no mistake, she doesn’t get a free pass,” Sandweg added. “She will face deportation proceedings and her release will be closely monitored by the government.”
“Once you’re in ICE custody, what happens next is completely left to ICE. The disturbingly arbitrary nature of the civilian immigration detention system allows immigrants to be detained indefinitely without a judge ever having to assess whether bail or electronic control was an appropriate alternative to detention,” she added.
“The prison where I live is known for being understaffed. To help alleviate that problem, 61 immigrants have been removed from this facility without notice in the past few weeks alone and transferred to a facility in Mississippi, where ICE can detain them at a lower cost.
“Now those detainees are far removed from their local support systems of friends or loved ones, and those lucky enough to have lawyers have been deprived of the ability to communicate with them easily and personally. Remote hearings are not suitable for suspects to consult with their lawyer during the proceedings.’