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A U.S. immigration judge on Wednesday cleared the way for fake German heiress Anna Sorokin to be released from custody to home confinement as she battles deportation if she meets certain conditions.
Manhattan immigration judge Charles Conroy said she must post a $10,000 (£8,900) bond, provide an address where she will live during the immigration case and refrain from posting on social media.
Sorokin, 31, has been detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement since March 2021 after serving more than three years in prison for defrauding banks, hotels and friends to fund a lavish lifestyle.
Immigration authorities said her visa had expired and she had to return to Germany.
Sorokin’s lawyer Duncan Levin said they were “very pleased” with the decision to release her home to jail.
“The judge correctly recognized that Anna was not a danger to the community,” Mr Levine said in a written statement.
“While there are still some hurdles to overcome in terms of release conditions, Anna is delighted to be leaving so she can focus on appealing her wrongful conviction.”
Immigration and Customs Enforcement left a message seeking comment.
Sorokin, whose plans inspired the Netflix series Inventing Anna, was convicted in 2019 on multiple counts of theft and theft. She was sentenced to between four and 12 years in prison, serving more than 500 days while her case was pending, and was released in February 2021 for good behavior.
Immigration authorities picked her up a few weeks later.
Prosecutors said Sorokin used the name Anna Delvey to subtly enter New York’s elite social circle by disguising himself as a socialite with a $67m (£59m) fortune overseas. She falsely claimed to be the daughter of a diplomat or an oil tycoon.
Prosecutors said Sorokin falsified records and lied to get bank loans, luxury hotels to keep her and wealthy Manhattanites to pay for her plane tickets and other expenses, stealing a total of $275,000 (£245,000).
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