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Outlook: Scammed by my friend, the fake heiress

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Scammed by my friend the fake heiress

30/09/2019 GMT

Scammed by my friend, the fake heiress

BBC World Service - Outlook, Scammed by my friend, the fake heiress

Rachel DeLoache Williams was conned out of tens of thousands of dollars by Anna Sorokin

Rachel DeLoache Williams was a key witness in the trial of Anna Sorokin - a fraudster who tricked New York city's elite into thinking she was a wealthy German heiress.

A few years ago Rachel DeLoache Williams found herself in the midst of a high-profile court case in the United States. It related to Anna Sorokin, someone Rachel had considered a close friend, but who had conned her out of tens of thousands of dollars. Anna tricked New York city’s elite into thinking she was a wealthy German heiress, when in fact she was a fraudster with no trust fund at all. She was found guilty on a number of charges including grand larceny and Rachel was a key witness in the trial. Rachel tells Emily Webb her story. She's written a book about her experience called My Friend Anna.  

When Vienna’s Vegetable Orchestra was founded in 1998, the idea was that its members would only perform once, but the orchestra was so popular that they’ve been performing ever since...and in top venues around the world. Although they sound like beautiful flutes, the instruments they play include carrots, white radishes and parsley..all of which have to be chopped into shape. Outlook’s Marta Medvesek has been to one of their concerts to find out more.

As 20 teams battle their way through the group stages of the Rugby World Cup in Japan, we hear from brothers Billy and Mako Vunipola who are part of the England squad. Their family is from the Pacific island of Tonga where their dad played for the national team. When Emily Webb went to meet them in 2017, they told her about growing up with a father who could be a bit of a taskmaster when it came to rugby.


Image:  Fake heiress Anna Sorokin after being sentenced
Credit:  Getty images: TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images

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