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Judge Scoffs At 'Socialite Grifter' Anna 'Delvey' Sorokin's Sentencing Request
By
Jen Chung
Published Jun 20, 2018
Modified Jun 20, 2018
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Will Ragozzino/BFA/REX/Shutterstock
By
Jen Chung
Published Jun 20, 2018
Modified Jun 20, 2018
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Anna Sorokin—better known as alleged socialite scam artist Anna Sorokin—was in court on Tuesday for a hearing about a possible plea deal, which she hoped would significantly reduce her potential jail time in exchange for a guilty plea.
For nearly five years Sorokin had been living the high-life, enjoying accommodations in luxury hotel suites, flying around the world for fashion shows and parties, and allegedly presenting herself as a German heiress who wanted to create a huge gallery space—until she was arrested in October 2017 on numerous counts of fraud. Prosecutors say she allegedly scammed banks, investors, and a friend out of nearly $275,000 to fund her fantasy life.
The NY Post reports that Justice Diane Kiesel "ripped" into the 27-year-old on Tuesday, saying, "I see no remorse... She seems more concerned about who is going to play her in the movie than what she’s done to the people she allegedly took advantage of."
Judge Kiesel seemed to be referring to news that in addition to Shonda Rhimes writing a Netflix series about her (based on a New York magazine article by Jessica Pressler), Sorokin is also personally invested in a film version based on a Vanity Fair article from one of her friends-turned-victims, Rachel Deloache Williams. Neff Davis, the hotel concierge that Sorokin befriended at the luxury hotel 11 Howard in Soho, spoke to Paper magazine about Sorokin and the silver screen adaptation:
How does Anna feel about the film project?
Oh, Anna's aware. She's like, Okay, as long as Jennifer Lawrence or Margot Robbie play me. And I'm like everyone wants Lindsay Lohan to play you and she's like, "Oh my god, no offense, but isn't she like 30? My hair's not even red anymore, did you tell them that?" She really, really wants Margot Robbie. She just watched I, Tonya in Rikers and thinks Margot is badass. I'm sure Margot Robbie would kill it. So that's where her concern is. Her feelings are high and she lets none of the negativity bother her. She said she's going to do what she has to do, and then she'll get out. I feel like we're like Thelma and Louise... I'm going to help tell the story correctly, and I'm going to be a film director someday, and you know what you can add to this article? That it was fate.
How so?
Anna had a plan. She always told me she'd be the reason my first movie got made, whether she paid for it, or otherwise. And in the weirdest turn of events that I could've never expected, that's exactly what happened. I became a part of it when I started hanging out with her. Nothing felt amiss, we were usually just having dinner. Rich people have dinners, that's what they do. So, to me, everything she was doing felt legit. She was a white girl and I just judged her off the way she looked and acted. I just didn't know that millionaire bankers were fooled. How stupid are those guys? You're fooled by a girl who [says she's German but] is from Russia and can't even speak German. And she had an AOL email from a "family accountant." But you know, that's America. That's America.
Prosecutors recommended a plea deal with a possible sentence of 3-9 years in prison, while Sorokin's defense attorney asked for 1-3 years, which Judge Kiesel called "a mere slap on the wrist for a crime this serious." Sorokin ultimately rejected a plea deal with a higher prison sentence and the case will now go to trial.
Sorokin is still being held at Rikers Island, with her trial set for September 18. Jezebel's Prachi Gupta was at the hearing and marveled, "Though Sorokin ostensibly has no money to her name, the lithe and petite white woman played the part of an heiress because she, to other rich white men and women, looked the part of an heiress. While countless men and women, disproportionately black and brown, file through a broken and racist justice system, Sorokin manages to float above them, admiring her inmates as part of a 'sociological experiment' and wondering which famous actress will play her in a movie."
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anna delvey
fraud
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socialite grifter
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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