Anna Sorokin, the woman who was convicted of grand larceny while posing as a German heiress and allegedly duping friends and others out of money, was released from prison last Thursday. In her first interview, she told Insider, "I know what I did and, and I know where I'm coming from. And I don't even need any reflection on that. I don't really have a problem with myself as a person, because I know I was never planning on defrauding anyone."
Sorokin, who also goes by the name Anna Delvey (that's what her Instagram and Twitter accounts use) was arrested in 2017 and dubbed the "Soho Grifter," after obtaining six-figures loans from banks that she didn't pay back. To obtain the loans, Sorokin allegedly used faked bank statements to show tens of millions in her accounts. She was also accused of posing as a wealthy German heiress, living in boutique hotels and becoming a familiar face on the international party circuit while discussing her plans to open a huge arts foundation in the city.
One woman, Rachel Williams, befriended by Sorokin, described how Sorokin invited her on a trip to Monaco, saying she would pay for Williams' expenses—but then Sorokin convinced her to foot the $70,000 bill. Williams wrote about the experience for Vanity Fair and testified at Sorokin's trial.
Sorokin's story caught the interest of TV producer Shonda Rhimes, who bought Sorokin's life rights and is currently filming a Netflix series, starring Julia Garner, called Inventing Anna, based on a New York magazine article.
In her interview with Insider, Sorokin discussed on her time on Rikers Island and, later, at Albion Correctional Facility, 340 miles north of NYC. "What I did have the time to reflect on was the criminal justice system — how pointless it is. And it's kind of crazy that they just put everyone together,"she told Insider's Jacob Shamsian. "I was with the craziest people. I feel like I have no place. I made the best out of it, but not everyone would have the option to do so. I have this huge support system. I would have everything I wanted."
She continued, "But I feel like it's insane. To take people, to lock them up, take everything away from them, and just to expect them to reform. What is that supposed to do for you? You're just deprived of everything. The same solution for everyone, no matter what you've done? When you're a criminal, it's such a different mindset, whether you kill someone, or if you sell drugs. The place where you're coming from is not comparable. They have this universal solution for everyone, and that should not be the case."
In the meantime, Sorokin has been posting on her website, working on a memoir, and filming herself for her own project "Anna Delvey TV."
"I just got out of prison, like two days ago," she explained to Insider. "So it's me like getting all this stuff from Sephora, me opening a bank account as soon as I get permission from my parole officer. I'm going to see my parole officer Tuesday for the first time. Things like that. It's a way to control what I want to tell." (The Post noted her Sephora visit with an article.)
Sorokin has used her Netflix payout to pay restitution to victims as well as legal fees. Immigrations Customs and Enforcement has previously said they would deport her, since she overstayed her visa, but she is currently appealing her case.
