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Anna Sorokin, the German woman who claimed to be a wealthy heiress and joined New York City's social elite but was living an elaborate lie, was found guilty of fraud on Thursday.
Sorokin was convicted of four counts of theft of services, three counts of grand larceny and one count of attempted grand larceny, and acquitted of one count of grand larceny and one count of attempted grand larceny after a monthlong trial that highlighted the fraudulent life she concocted in New York.
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The 28-year-old, who previously went by the name "Anna Delvey," deceived a network of friends and financial institutions into believing she had a roughly $67 million fortune overseas and a diplomat or oil baron father.
Sorokin went to remarkable lengths to have others pay her way, including Rachel Williams, a former Vanity Fair photo editor, who penned a piece about her experience. Sorokin allegedly duped Williams into paying a $62,000 bill for what was advertised as an all-expenses-paid trip to Morocco — a charge of which Sorokin was acquitted.
Anna Sorokin was found guilty on Thursday after prosecutors alleged she deceived friends and financial institutions into believing she had $67 million. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
The faux German heiress was also accused of forging financial records in an application for a $22 million loan to fund a private arts club she wanted to build, complete with exhibitions, installations and pop-up shops, prosecutors said. She was denied the loan but persuaded one bank to lend her $100,000 she failed to repay.
Sorokin's lawyer, Todd Spodek, insisted Sorokin planned to settle her six-figure debts and was merely "buying time," and portrayed her as an ambitious entrepreneur who had merely gotten in over her head but had no criminal intent.
Anna Sorokin faces up to 15 years in prison and possible deportation, according to her defense attorney.
(AP Photo/Richard Drew)
He said that Sorokin was "upset, as anyone would be," following the verdict, but said she was pleased she had been acquitted of attempting to steal more than $1 million from City National Bank.
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Because she overstayed her visa, Sorokin could be deported to Germany, Spodek said. She also faces up to 15 years imprisonment on the most serious charge.
Sorokin is set to be sentenced on May 9.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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