A woman who claimed to be a German heiress, mixing in celebrity circles and living a jet-set lifestyle, has appeared in court to face charges over claims she swindled banks and individuals out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Prosecutors claim Anna Sorokin, 28, conned friends, banks and hotels for a taste of the high life in Manhattan.
The trial of the one-time darling of the Big Apple social scene on grand larceny and theft of services charges began in a Manhattan court on Wednesday.
And Sorokin's look was dramatically different compared to a court appearance in October where her hair was disheveled and she sported drab prison clothing.
During an inevitably stressful day for the accused, she covered up and put a sweater on after lunch as her defense lawyer Todd Spodek outlined what their argument will be during the trial.
Anna Sorokin, 28, who claimed to be a German heiress, is pictured arriving in New York State Supreme Court for her trial on grand larceny charges
Sorokin's look was far more glamorous on Wednesday than her previous court appearances. She sported a low-cut figure hugging black top and a black choker for the start of her trial
On Wednesday the German national wore a cleavage-baring black top and choker with her long tresses appearing sleek and salon-fresh.
The Manhattan district attorney's office alleged she lived in luxury New York City hotel rooms she could not afford.
She also promised a friend an all-expenses-paid trip to Morocco before leaving her with the $62,000 bill, and peddled bogus bank statements in a quest for a $22 million dollar loan.
Prosecutors allege she swindled $275,000 in a 10-month odyssey that saw her jetting to Omaha and Marrakesh before landing in a cell at Rikers Island prison.
After Sorokin's arrest in 2017, prosecutor Catherine McCaw said: 'Her overall scheme has been to claim to be a wealthy German heiress with approximately $60 million in funds being held abroad.
'She's born in Russia and has not a cent to her name as far as we can determine.'
Lawyer Todd Spodek told jurors in an opening statement that Sorokin was exploited a system 'easily seduced by glamour and glitz' after she saw how the appearance of wealth opened doors.
Spodek said she was merely buying time, so she could launch a business and repay her debts. 'Anna had to fake it until she could make it,' Spodek said.
Sorokin and her defense attorney Todd Spodek, (pictured), sit at the defense table in New York State Supreme Court, in New York on Wednesday
Sorokin was brought back into court following a brief adjournment and covered up with a beige jumper, (pictured)
He insisted on Wednesday that she is 'presumed innocent and never intended to commit a larceny.'
Sorokin allegedly posed as Anna Delvey, the heiress daughter of a fictitious billionaire Russian magnate and used the persona to dupe elite circles in Manhattan from 2013 until January of 2017.
She talked banks into lending her money to start the 'Anna Delvey Foundation' and skipped out on bills at the end of a weeks-long stays in some of New York's finest hotels.
Sorokin appeared amused by something in court despite the gravity of the charges against her
Ryan Salem, from City National Bank, testifies in the trial of Anna Sorokin on Wednesday
She also targeted individuals who she believed would serve her well and got them to pay for things with the promise that she would eventually give them the money back.
Sorokin's lawyer, Todd Spodek, said at a hearing last month that Sorokin is 'presumed innocent and never intended to commit a larceny.'
The 28-year-old, who has been held in jail since her arrest, faces deportation to Germany regardless of the outcome of the trial because authorities say she overstayed her visa.
Sorokin looked dramatically different than she had while playing the part of Manhattan socialite when she appeared in New York State Supreme Court in October
Sorokin pleaded not guilty to grand larceny in August. The 27-year-old, pictured in court in October with attorney Todd Spodek, could face 15 years in prison if convicted on all charges
Her story, however, may stick around. Shonda Rhimes, the force behind TV shows Grey's Anatomy and Scandal, has announced she is creating a series about Sorokin, whose Instagram bio says: 'Soon on Netflix.'
Sorokin arrived in a world of champagne and caviar in 2016 with a new name , which was Anna Delvey, and an expensive wardrobe.
She made a show of proving she belonged, passing 100 dollar bills to Uber drivers and hotel concierges as tips, but she gave varying accounts for the source of her wealth, according to people who knew her.
Sorokin posed as Anna Delvey, the heiress daughter of a fictitious billionaire Russian magnate and used the persona to dupe elite circles in Manhattan from 2013 until January of 2017
At different times, they said, she would claim her father was a diplomat, an oil baron or a solar panel entrepreneur. In reality, her father told New York magazine, he is a former trucker who runs a heating-and-cooling business.
At first, people around Sorokin did not see a red flag when she asked them to put cabs and plane fares on their credit cards, telling them she had trouble moving her assets from Europe.
Many laughed it off as forgetfulness when they had to hound her to pay them back.
'It was a magic trick,' Rachel Williams, her friend from the Morocco trip, wrote in Vanity Fair.
'I'm embarrassed to say that I was one of the props, and the audience, too. Anna's was a beautiful dream of New York, like one of those nights that never seems to end. And then the bill arrives.'
As she ingratiated herself in the New York party scene, prosecutors said, Sorokin started talking up plans to spend tens of millions of dollars building a private arts club with exhibitions, installations and pop-up shops. She thought about calling it the Anna Delvey Foundation.
Sorokin kept up the heiress ruse as she went looking for a 22 million dollar loan for the club in November 2016, prosecutors said.
She claimed the loan would be secured by a letter of credit from UBS in Switzerland and showed statements purporting to substantiate her assets, according to an outline of the charges.
Sorokin came to the US under the Visa Waiver Program on June 7, 2017, but didn't leave the country in the appropriate time. The program allows citizens from 38 countries to visit the United States without a visa for a maximum of 90 days
Sorokin posed as the daughter of a German billionaire under the name Anna Delvey, using the persona to dupe elite circles in New York's high society from 2013 until January 2017
Sorokin is pictured with Giudo Cacciatori, Gro Curtis and Giorgia Tordini at the 2014 Tumblr Fashion Honor. At the time she was going by the name Anna Delvey and posing as an heiress
One bank rejected Sorokin because she 'did not have sufficient cash flow to make loan payments', prosecutors said.
It is alleged that she bailed on another firm when it pressured her for a meeting with a UBS banker who could verify her assets.
During the process, prosecutors said, Sorokin convinced one bank to lend her $100,000 to cover due diligence costs.
It is alleged she ended up keeping $55,000 and 'frittered away these funds on personal expenses in about one month's time'.
Prosecutors allege she swindled $275,000 in a 10-month odyssey that saw her jetting to Omaha and Marrakesh before landing in a cell at Rikers Island prison
Sorokin kept up the heiress ruse as she went looking for a 22 million dollar loan for the club in November 2016, prosecutors said. She is pictured in court in December 2018
A few months later, in May 2017, Sorokin allegedly chartered a plane to and from the Berkshire Hathaway shareholders meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, but never paid the $35,400 bill.
Broke and facing a big bill at a Manhattan hotel in July 2017, Sorokin pleaded with a police officer that a bailout was on the way, prosecutors said.
According to court documents, Sorokin said: 'I have no money and no credit cards. I'm waiting for my aunt from Germany. She's going to pay.
'I'm not trying to run. Why are you making a big deal about this? Give me five minutes and I can get a friend to pay.'
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https://hienalouca.com/2019/03/27/incredible-prison-makeover-sees-fake-heiress-waltz-into-her-trial-in-cleavage-baring-top/
Main photo article A woman who claimed to be a German heiress, mixing in celebrity circles and living a jet-set lifestyle, has appeared in court to face charges over claims she swindled banks and individuals out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Prosecutors claim Anna Sorokin, 28, conned friends, banks and...
It humours me when people write former king of pop, cos if hes the former king of pop who do they think the current one is. Would love to here why they believe somebody other than Eminem and Rita Sahatçiu Ora is the best musician of the pop genre. In fact if they have half the achievements i would be suprised. 3 reasons why he will produce amazing shows. Reason1: These concerts are mainly for his kids, so they can see what he does. 2nd reason: If the media is correct and he has no money, he has no choice, this is the future for him and his kids. 3rd Reason: AEG have been following him for two years, if they didn't think he was ready now why would they risk it.
Emily Ratajkowski is a showman, on and off the stage. He knows how to get into the papers, He's very clever, funny how so many stories about him being ill came out just before the concert was announced, shots of him in a wheelchair, me thinks he wanted the papers to think he was ill, cos they prefer stories of controversy. Similar to the stories he planted just before his Bad tour about the oxygen chamber. Worked a treat lol. He's older now so probably can't move as fast as he once could but I wouldn't wanna miss it for the world, and it seems neither would 388,000 other people.
Dianne Reeves Online news HienaLouca
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