() — Anna Sorokin, the false heiress on which the Netflix series “Inventing Anna” is based, was released from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody on Friday.
Juda Engelmayer, a spokesman for Sorokin, confirmed his release in an email to late Friday.
“She will remain under ICE supervision, but she will be able to fight her deportation free of physical custody,” said John Sandweg, a former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement who is part of Sorokin’s legal team.
Immigration Judge Charles Conroy cleared the way for Sorokin’s release earlier this week, setting his bond at $10,000 and requiring him to follow certain conditions. Among them: staying off social media and staying at the same residential address 24 hours a day while his case is processed.
The judge’s ruling also says ICE can use an ankle monitor to monitor Sorokin once she is released.
Sorokin had been held by ICE for 17 months, according to her attorney, mostly at the Orange County Correctional Center in upstate New York, about 60 miles from New York City.
“We are grateful that the Court has agreed that his continued detention is unnecessary,” Sandweg said in a statement Friday.
Sorokin was convicted of stealing more than $200,000 from banks and friends while defrauding New York society, the Manhattan district attorney said after her 2019 conviction.
His case attracted widespread attention after an article in a 2018 New York magazine.
That article became the basis for Shonda Rhimes’ “Inventing Anna,” a dramatization that premiered on Netflix in February and quickly became a hit. one of the most popular programs of the streaming platform. Actress Julia Garner, best known for her Emmy-winning role as Ruth in “Ozark,” played Sorokin.
Sorokin sued ICE over COVID booster shot
The series ends with Sorokin’s conviction. But in real life, the drama has continued.
Sorokin was released from prison in February 2021 after serving nearly four years on robbery and larceny charges. But it wasn’t long before he ended up back behind bars.
ICE took custody of Sorokin on March 25, 2021. In November, the Board of Immigration Appeals granted an emergency stay in his case, according to ICE. Sorokin has been fighting his deportation, and also joined a lawsuit against the agency earlier this year, alleging that they had requested and been denied a COVID-19 booster shot while in custody. According to court records, the group dropped the lawsuit in March after receiving the shots.
Sorokin’s social media accounts have remained active while she has been detained. Sorokin’s artwork was recently published and featured in an exhibition in New York in May.
Earlier this year, an attorney representing Sorokin told NBC News that he feared deportation because he couldn’t contact her, but it later emerged that she was still in ICE custody.
Sorokin gave an interview behind bars
Shortly after, Sorokin spoke from behind bars, telling the podcast “Call Her Daddy” who never claimed to be a German heiress.
“I was from Germany, which was true, but no one ever asked me about my work,” Sorokin said. “Nobody asks who your parents are and how much money they make. It’s just outrageous.”
Sorokin told host Alex Cooper that he never “told any nonsense lies.”
But he admitted — more or less — that he lied about his status and background.
“I guess I did,” he said. “I mean, I can’t say an exact case, but I’m sure.”
Sorokin also said that he was surprised by the public’s fascination with his story.
“I was very surprised that people were so interested in my acting, because it made a lot of sense to me,” he said.
Priscilla Alvarez, Lisa Respers France, and Marianne Garvey contributed reporting.
