The world’s wealthiest scammers who were brought to justice (copy)
Filthy-rich fraudsters who got their comeuppance

Famous financier fraudster Bernie Madoff died behind bars on 14 April aged 82. He had been serving a 150-year sentence since 2009, following his involvement in the world's largest Ponzi scheme and the biggest financial fraud in US history. But Madoff isn't the only fraudster to have conned people on a huge scale. While some have never been charged for their crimes, many have done serious jail time or are still serving long stretches in prison. Click or scroll through some of the most notorious swindlers who were eventually brought to justice.
Anna Sorokin (Delvey): one-year-and-nine-month custodial sentence

Russian-born German Anna Sorokin fooled New York's elite when she posed as a German heiress called Anna Delvey, who supposedly had a $66 million (£48m) trust fund. Living a jet-set lifestyle, Sorokin stayed at top hotels for months on end, partied with the rich and famous, and took extravagant holidays, documenting her high life on Instagram as @theannadelvey. Sorokin, now 30, successfully kept up her charade for several years by forging financial documents, and told many of her friends about her desire to create a $40 million (£29m) members-only arts centre; she even attempted to persuade a hedge fund to give her a $22 million (£16m) loan to build it. While she failed in this particular bid, Sorokin did get one bank to give her a $100,000 (£72k) overdraft. However, her lies soon began to catch up with her and in July 2017 she was arrested over two unpaid hotel bills and a restaurant tab. The wannabe socialite was then arrested again four months later.
Anna Sorokin (Delvey): one-year-and-nine-month custodial sentence

After scamming banks, luxury hotels and individuals out of more than $200,000 (£145k), she was convicted of theft of services and grand larceny in 2019 and sentenced to 12 years in jail. She declined a plea deal. On 12 February this year Sorokin was released from prison early for good behaviour, after serving just under two years. The tale of the phony heiress is being turned into a Netflix series produced by Shonda Rhimes, while HBO had previously said it was going to create a show based on the story too. Sorokin reportedly received a $320,000 (£230k) fee from Netflix. However, due to a New York law that stops criminals profiting from their criminality, her accounts were frozen and the money was used to pay back those she conned first, as well as paying off fines, and attorney fees. It's thought that at least $170,000 (£122k) was used to pay back banks alone.
Raffaello Follieri: four-years-and-six-month custodial sentence

The brains behind the so-called 'Vati-Con' scandal, Italian real estate developer Raffaello Follieri, who moved to New York in 2003, fooled rich people including Bill Clinton into investing millions of dollars to buy Catholic churches in the US on behalf of the Vatican. In reality Follieri, who was dating actress Anne Hathaway at the time, had zero connection with the Holy See and used the cash to fund his extravagant lifestyle.
Raffaello Follieri: four-years-and-six-month custodial sentence

Christophe Rocancourt: four-years-and-10-month custodial sentence

Christophe Rocancourt: four-years-and-10-month custodial sentence

Charles Ponzi: five-year custodial sentence

Charles Ponzi: five-year custodial sentence

Joseph Weil: six-year custodial sentence

Joseph Weil: six-year custodial sentence

Calisto Tanzi: eight-years-and-one-month custodial sentence

Calisto Tanzi: eight-years-and-one-month custodial sentence

Cassie Chadwick: 14-year custodial sentence

Cassie Chadwick: 14-year custodial sentence

Reed Slatkin: 14-year custodial sentence

Reed Slatkin: 14-year custodial sentence

Huang Guangyu: 14-year custodial sentence

Huang Guangyu: 14-year custodial sentence

Samuel Israel III: 22-year custodial sentence

Samuel Israel III: 22-year custodial sentence

Dennis Kozlowski: 25-year custodial sentence

The erstwhile CEO of security giant Tyco International, Dennis Kozlowski creamed $150 million (£95m) in unauthorised bonuses and loans from the company during the 1990s and early 2000s according to Forbes. Kozlowski's spending was legendary. The Tyco boss snagged a $30 million (£19m) apartment in Manhattan and spent $6,000 (£3.8k) on shower curtains and $30,000 (£19k) on dog umbrella stands.
Dennis Kozlowski: 25-year custodial sentence

Bernard Ebbers: 25-year custodial sentence

Bernard Ebbers: 25-year custodial sentence

Barry Minkow: 35-year custodial sentence

Barry Minkow: 35-year custodial sentence

Minkow was sentenced to a 25-year jail term but scored an early release in 1995. Seemingly reformed, he became a pastor and fraud investigator, but was convicted in 2011 of insider trading after plotting to drive down the stock price of homebuilder Lennar, and received a five-year sentence. In 2014, Minkow was convicted for another five years, this time for defrauding members of his church to pay for a film of his life story starring Mark Hamill, and in which Minkow played himself. It was simply called Con-Man. A new documentary series on his life is reportedly in the works too.
Allen Stanford: 110-year custodial sentence

Allen Stanford: 110-year custodial sentence

Stanford turned himself in on 18 June 18 2009, and was convicted of the fraud in March 2012. The disreputable boss was sentenced to 110 years in jail, and is currently serving time at the high-security United States Penitentiary, Coleman in Florida. Needless to say, his knighthood has since been revoked.
Now read about the bankrupt billionaires who lost it all
Bernie Madoff: 150-year custodial sentence

The late Bernie Madoff duped 4,800 clients out of a staggering $17.5 billion (£12.6bn), operating the biggest financial fraud in the US history and the world's largest Ponzi scheme. However, many of his clients, which included HSBC, AXA, Mitsubishi and celebrities including Steven Spielberg, Kevin Bacon and Larry King, felt they were conned out of more as Madoff had claimed their investments had grown to $60 billion (£43bn). The notorious scammer was investigated by federal authorities on several occasions during the 2000s and finally indicted for the fraud in December 2008.
Bernie Madoff: 150-year custodial sentence

Madoff confessed to transforming his wealth management business into a colossal Ponzi scheme during the 1990s and pleaded guilty to 11 felonies in March 2009. The brazen fraudster was eventually sentenced to a staggering 150 years in prison for the crime, the maximum possible sentence allowed. As of 2020, the US Department of Justice has returned $3.2 billion (£2.3bn) to people who were conned by Madoff through The Madoff Victim Fund it set up in 2013. There are around 30,000 participating victims. Madoff died in jail on 14 April this year.
Now read about the famous names scammed for their fortunes
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