Anna Delvey Waltzes Out of Prison and Into ‘Dancing With The Stars’: Report

Since her move from prison to house arrest in 2022, convicted Manhattan con artist Anna Delvey has announced a number of new hustles: an art show, a docuseries deal, and a triumphant return to social media, among other new responsibilities. A new report suggests that she’s branching out beyond the Manhattan/art/Instagram personal brand communicated by the Netflix drama about her exploits, and will head to Los Angeles to participate in reality competition show Dancing With The Stars.

Delvey, as you likely know, was sentenced to “at least four” years in prison in 2019, after a jury declared her guilty of attempted grand larceny, three grand larceny counts and four misdemeanor charges of theft of service. This came after she defrauded people and businesses out of hundreds of thousands of dollars, while claiming to be an heiress with a plan to build a highbrow Manhattan social club for the arts. Former Vanity Fair staffer Rachel Williams is one of the numerous people who say they were bilked by Delvey, detailing an elaborate scheme of cross-transfers and social engineering that eventually collapsed. (Williams was also depicted in the Netflix adaptation of the case, Inventing Anna, and sued the streamer over her characterization.)

Anna Delvey was released from prison in 2021, but was sent to an immigration detention facility for the next 18 months for allegedly overstaying her visa. She was released on bail in 2022, and has been held under house arrest as her deportation proceedings wind their way through the courts. According to CNN, she’s now seeking asylum in the US, as “There is evidence that demonstrates she would be deported from Germany to Russia and be persecuted,” attorney John Sandweg says.

Reports suggest that those house arrest rules have relaxed in recent months, with Delvey making trips around town. According to Page Six, she’s now allowed to travel as far as 70 miles from home—and has recently “been given special permission to travel to LA” to appear as a contestant on DWTS. In fact, “We hear she’s already headed to LA to prepare to compete,” the publication claims.

Between the legal bills for her deportation battle, the $199,000 in restitution and fine of $24,000 she was ordered to pay at her sentencing, and the everyday costs of living in New York, it’s likely Delvey is eager to find new revenue streams—after all, its unclear if she’ll be be allowed to profit from Inventing Anna‘s success. Variety reports that another notorious figure, former Donald Trump spokesperson Sean Spicer made at least $125,000 during his spin there in 2019, with contestants who make it past the third week capping out at $295,000. A drop in the bucket compared to the $22 million Delvey allegedly tried to score around that same time, but it’s certainly a start.