5 Things To Know About Notorious Scammer Anna ‘Delvey’ Sorokin
Sorokin first appeared on New York’s social scene in 2014 after pretending to be a wealthy heiress and ultimately managed to steal $275,000 from her victims.
Mary Altaffer via AP Images. File
At first, she looked like a rich, young woman determined to leave her mark on New York City, but Anna Sorokin—who introduced herself as Anna Delvey—was just a grifter trying to live in luxury she couldn’t afford by scamming friends and writing bad checks.
The German heiress isn’t German at all—and her last name is not Delvey
When she arrived in New York as an intern at Purple Fashion magazine, Sorokin introduced herself as Anna Delvey and said she was a German heiress from Cologne, though she reportedly told different people different origins stories for her fortune. She told some people her father worked in the solar panel industry while others believed her family dealt in antiques or oil and that her father was a diplomat to Russia. In reality, the young woman was born just outside Moscow to working-class parents, and her family relocated to Germany when she was a teen. Her parents reportedly told New York magazine that they don’t know where the name Delvey came from.
Her con included trying to open a high-end art club on Park Avenue
Prior to her move to New York, Sorokin was interning at Purple Fashion’s Paris office but dreamed of a move to New York City. She transferred to the New York office and quickly began trying to drum up support to launch the Anna Delvey Foundation, a members-only art club to be located in the Church Missions House on Park Avenue in Manhattan. She managed to find interested investors and then created a business manager named Peter Hennecke to vouch for her wealth. Sorokin, however, was using a voice distortion app to play the part of Hennecke.
She is not sorry for her crimes
When her cons finally caught up to her in 2017, she had bilked $275,000 from hotels, restaurants, banks, and friends. In April 2019, she was convicted for four counts of theft services, three counts of grand larceny, and one count of attempted grand larceny. Just before sentencing, she reportedly told the New York Times that she was not sorry for her crimes. Her story appears to have changed—following her February 2021 release from prison, she then told the New York Times that she is remorseful for her actions.
Sorokin is linked to some other con artists and scammers
While in New York, Sorokin reportedly crossed paths with the so-called “pharma-bro” Martin Shkreli and went so far as to introduce him as a “dear friend,” according to New York Magazine. Shkreli is currently serving prison time for securities fraud. Sorokin also met Billy McFarland, organizer of the Fyre Festival, a 2017 music festival set to take place in the Bahamas. Sorokin reportedly lived at the headquarters of McFarland’s credit card company and refused to leave. McFarland is in prison after being convicted of defrauding investors in his Caribbean music festival plans.
Following Sorokin’s release from prison, she was arrested by ICE
Less than two months after her release from prison, officials from Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Sorokin for overstaying her visa. She remains in ICE custody and faces deportation to Germany.
