Inventing Anna is a Netflix mini-series that was released on February 11, 2022. The series revolves around the lies and crimes of Anna Sorokin who faked her identity and managed to cheat several financial institutions as well as individuals. The series is streaming on Netflix.
Anna Sorokin reportedly posed as a wealthy German heiress named Anna Delvey and swindled many banks and hotels while also cheating many rich socialites while she lived in New York. She reportedly moved from one hotel to another and did not pay bills for long enough, which led to her being evicted from each of the places. An investigation revealed that she stole around $275,000, as per a report by People Magazine.
Between 2013 and 2017, Anna Sorokin reportedly stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from financial institutions, banks, and her socialite friends, claiming to want to start a members-only club titled the Anna Delvey Foundation, TIME reported. It was later revealed that Sorokin was not of German origin and was only raised there. According to prosecutors, she forged several financial documents to ensure that the lies were being kept up. She even got a $100,000 overdraft loan from a bank, as per a report by BBC.
Her creditors included a private jet company, several banks, and two downtown hotels, whom Anna Sorokin claimed she intended to pay back. She reportedly handed around $100 tips at the hotels she stayed in. She delayed paying the bills, claiming that the wire transfers would get through. However, they never did. She wore Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent while putting up the act and hired a private trainer. She also organized expensive dinners, The New York Times reported.
Where is Inventing Anna’s Anna Sorokin originally from & when did she move to the U.S.?
Anna Sorokin was born in Russia and grew up in Eschweiler, Germany. Sorokin’s father was employed at a transport company initially. However, the company drowned in debt and became insolvent. At 19, Sorokin decided to move away from her family. Before that, she stayed with her parents and her brother. She moved to Paris, wishing to pursue a fashion degree. As per a report by The New York Times, she claimed that her parents were rather conservative and that she wasn’t too close to them.
In Paris, she soon took up the job of shooting pictures for a fashion, culture, and art magazine called Purple. Anna Sorokin reportedly depended on her parents to pay for her apartment, as she was only paid around 400 euros. In 2013, she reportedly had a breakup and decided to visit New York. She wanted to attend Fashion Week and take a trip to Montauk. However, she ended up staying in New York for longer. In the city, she worked for the Purple magazine at their New York office briefly before she quit.
According to another report by The New York Times, Anna Sorokin, who was from a middle-class family, aspired to be part of the upper class of Manhattan society. She kept up the act very well. None of her friends who decided to invest in her members-only club doubted her identity owing to the brands she wore, the tips she gave out, and the expensive dinner treats she hosted.
When she was produced in front of the judge, Sorokin made headlines because she hired a courtroom stylist. In one instance, she reportedly refused to appear in front of the judge because of an issue she had with her outfit.
How did Sorokin get caught?
One of New York’s rich hoteliers, André Balazs, soon became a friend of Anna Sorokin’s. A British-American entrepreneur named Roo Rogers and a real-estate developer named Aby Rosen were among her acquaintances. Santiago Calatrava was the architect who designed the Oculus, the centerpiece of the World Trade Center’s transit hub. His son, Gabriel Andres Calatrava, also became a close friend of Anna’s.
She then decided that she would have to take a leap and maybe open a club to attract investors. However, before Anna Sorokin’s big plan was executed, her pretense collapsed.
Anna Sorokin was first arrested in July 2017 when she was charged with skipping multiple bills. The bills included those she made at the Beekman and W New York hotels and a lunch bill at the Le Parker Meridien Hotel. She was released soon after and arrested once again in October before her trial. Although she was offered a plea deal of a lesser sentence in case of pleading guilty, she took her chance with trial.
Anna Sorokin was found guilty of eight charges, including attempted grand larceny in the first degree, grand larceny in the second-degree, grand larceny in the third degree, and theft of services. According to People Magazine, she was sentenced to 4 to 12 years in prison. She was asked to pay $24,000 as a fine. She was also asked to pay $199,000 as restitution. Sorokin was released from prison early in 2021.
Where is Anna Delvey Now?
After Anna Sorokin was released from prison in February 2021, she was reportedly taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. This was because she overstayed her visa in March 2021. Once she was released from there too in October 2022, she had to pay a bill amount of $10,000 and was banned from social media. When she pretended to be a wealthy heiress, she reportedly posted a lot on social media to keep up the act.
As per a report by People Magazine, she has been living in an apartment building in New York ever since her release in October 2022. Anna Sorokin was under house arrest there. Although she had served time for her crimes and stealing, she was under arrest for the immigration issue. She was then asked to wear an ankle monitor throughout her house arrest and wasn’t allowed to leave home for any reason. Sorokin reportedly had a personal trainer come over to her apartment.
The Anna Delvey Show was a podcast that Anna Sorokin started in 2023 and invited several popular guests onto it. All the guests reportedly went over to her house to record themselves. Kenny Schachter, Jeremy Harris, Emily Ratajkowski, Whitney Cummings, and Julia Fox were among the guests on her podcast. She has reportedly been hosting famous personalities, including actors, musicians, socialites, and other celebrities, at her home, where she has been organizing private dinners and other events. Her social life is allegedly still blooming despite the legal troubles and revelations.
Netflix‘s Inventing Anna is a mini-series. It follows the case of Anna Sorokin and how she managed to lie to institutions and individuals alike for years together before getting caught. The series was released on February 11, 2022, and is currently streaming on Netflix.
