Anna Sorokin, also known as Anna Delvey, is a con artist and convicted fraudster who has a net worth of $50,000. Anna Sorokin infamously pretended to be a wealthy heiress to gain access to the elite New York City social world. Sorokin gained widespread recognition due to various articles, podcasts, and television episodes about her story, as well as through the hit Netflix miniseries "Inventing Anna."

From 2013 to 2017, she deceived and defrauded multiple major banks, hotels, and individuals of $275,000, resulting in a prison sentence that lasted for a little over two years. She ultimately paid $198,000 in restitution to her victims. Netflix paid Anna $320,000 for her life rights and to act as a consultant on its series.

Early Life and Education

Anna Sorokin was born on January 23, 1991 in Domodedovo, Moscow Oblast in what was then Soviet Russia. Her mother owned a small convenience mart, while her father worked as a truck driver. In 2007, the family moved to North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, where Sorokin's father became an executive at a transportation company. After the company became insolvent in 2013, he opened an HVAC business. Sorokin was educated at the Catholic grammar school Bischöfliche Liebfrauenschule Eschweiler. Following her graduation, she moved to London to attend the art school Central Saint Martins, but soon dropped out and returned to Germany.

Career Beginnings

In 2012, Sorokin briefly worked as an intern at a PR company in Berlin. After that, she moved to Paris, France, where she interned for the fashion magazine Purple. It was during that time Sorokin began using the pseudonym Anna Delvey.

Fraudulent Activity

In 2013, Sorokin traveled to New York City for New York Fashion Week. Preferring the city to Paris, she chose to stay and fraudulently worm her way into the elite NYC social scene. To do this, Sorokin conceived of a private members' club and art foundation named after her alias, called the Anna Delvey Foundation. Her proposal included leasing the six-floor Church Missions House as a multipurpose events venue and art studio. During this time, Sorokin posed as a wealthy heiress in order to get into exclusive events, frequently bragging about her alleged fortune and castigating those she felt were inferior. She made many acquaintances with other notable people, and used Microsoft Word to make false bank statements and various other financial documents purporting to verify her wealth. In late 2016, Sorokin submitted her false documents as part of a loan application for $22 million to City National; when she was denied, she applied for a loan from Fortress. She continued to provide a variety of fake information to financial institutions, including email addresses. Sorokin went on to purchase luxury clothes, electronics, cosmetics, and even her own personal trainer, and to stay at various upscale hotels.

Due to her lavish spending, Sorokin ran out of money by early 2017. She deposited $160,000 worth of fraudulent checks in a Citibank account, and booked a return charter flight on a business jet to attend the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway in Omaha, Nebraska. That May, Sorokin took a luxury trip to Morocco that was mostly funded by her acquaintance Rachel Williams, whom she falsely told she would reimburse. After contacting other acquaintances who were never repaid by Sorokin, and who had all been regaled with different stories about the origin of her wealth, Williams realized she was being conned. Returning to New York, Sorokin attempted to scam a few luxury hotels where she stayed, and was ultimately evicted. She was now homeless, and under investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney for bank fraud.

(Photo by Mike Coppola/AD/Getty Images for ABA)

Arrest and Indictment

In a sting operation planned by NYPD officer Michael McCaffrey, Sorokin was arrested in October of 2017 in Malibu, California. McCaffrey was assisted by Sorokin's longtime acquaintance Rachel Williams, with whom he arranged a lunch meeting with Sorokin outside of the addiction treatment facility where Sorokin was staying. Some weeks after her arrest, Sorokin was indicted by a grand jury on multiple counts of grand larceny.

Conviction and Imprisonment

Sorokin's trial began in March of 2019 in New York City. A little over a month later, the jury declared Sorokin guilty of eight charges. She was subsequently sentenced to four to twelve years in state prison, issued a $24,000 fine, and ordered to pay $199,000 in restitution. During the trial, Sorokin was incarcerated at Rikers Island, where she was cited 13 times for misbehavior. After the trial, she was imprisoned at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women before being transferred to Albion Correctional Facility. Having served a little over two years of her sentence, Sorokin was released on parole in February of 2021. However, six weeks later, she was taken into custody by ICE agents for overstaying her visa. In late 2022, Sorokin was granted a $10,000 bail and released from prison to be put on house arrest.

In the Media

Because of her stranger-than-fiction story, Sorokin has been the subject of books, podcasts, and television series. In 2019, her acquaintance Rachel Williams published the book "My Friend Anna," which chronicles the women's experiences together. Sorokin's story has also been featured in episodes of such television shows as "American Greed," "Generation Hustle," and "20/20," as well as on the podcast "Fake Heiress." Her greatest exposure arguably came with the 2022 Netflix miniseries "Inventing Anna," created by Shonda Rhimes. In the series, Sorokin is portrayed by Julia Garner, who earned Emmy, SAG, and Golden Globe Award nominations for her performance. Also in 2022, Sorokin signed a deal to star in a reality television series about her post-prison life.

Read more: Anna Delvey Net Worth

Bugsy Siegel was an American mobster who had a net worth of $8 million at the time of his death, which is the same as around $100 million today after adjusting for inflation. He is known for being one of the most infamous and feared gangsters of his time. Bugsy Siegel was known for his influence in the National Crime Syndicate and his integral role in developing the Las Vegas Strip. He also co-founded the organized crime group Murder, Inc. and did bootlegging during Prohibition. In 1947, Siegel was shot and killed by a sniper while sitting in his girlfriend Virginia Hill's Beverly Hills mansion. He was 41 years old at the time of his death.

Early Life

Bugsy Siegel was born as Benjamin Siegel on February 28, 1906 in Brooklyn, New York City as the second of five children of a poor Jewish immigrant family. His parents were Jennie and Max. Siegel got into crime early in life; restive in school, he left to join a gang on Manhattan's Lower East Side. He mostly committed thefts until meeting Moe Sedway, with whom he launched a protection racket. Siegel's criminal record grew steadily during his teenage and young adult years, with charges including armed robbery, murder, and rape.

The Bugs and Meyer Mob

Shortly after the beginning of Prohibition, Siegel was recruited by mobster Meyer Lansky to form the Jewish-American street gang the Bugs and Meyer Mob. In the early 20s, the group worked with Charles "Lucky" Luciano and his right-hand man Frank Costello. The Bugs and Meyer Mob recruited skilled gunmen, supplied bootleggers with stolen trucks, facilitated illegal gambling operations, and handled hits for various bootleg gangs in New York and New Jersey. Ultimately, the group was responsible for helping to decimate or subordinate most of its rival Italian-American gangs.

Getty

Murder, Inc.

Following the Castellammarese War and the assassination of mob boss Salvatore Maranzano, Luciano created the Commission and established a Jewish-Italian criminal alliance that would become known as the National Crime Syndicate. Soon after this, Siegel and Lansky disbanded the Bugs and Meyer Mob and helped co-found Murder, Inc., the enforcement arm of the Syndicate. During its activity from roughly 1929 to 1941, Murder, Inc. carried out many hits.

In his years with Murder, Inc., Siegel faced only one conviction; he was arrested in early 1932 in Miami for gambling and vagrancy. After this, Siegel got into a major dispute with the Fabrizzo brothers, who had tried to assassinate him for sending their boss, Waxey Gordon, to prison. In response, Siegel hunted them down and killed them. Among his other notable murders, he killed rival loan sharks Louis and Joseph Amberg in 1935, and helped kill Harry Greenberg in 1939. For the latter homicide, Siegel was jailed before being acquitted on account of insufficient evidence in 1942.

Move to California

Under serious threat of reprisal from his enemies, Siegel was sent to California in the late 30s. In Los Angeles, he quickly got to work developing gambling rackets, teaming up with Jack Dragna and Mickey Cohen. Siegel used the money he made to help start a drug trade route from Mexico. Additionally, he took control of several offshore casinos and a prominent prostitution ring. Siegel built up his profile to the point he became a bona fide star who was welcomed into the upper echelons of Hollywood society. He associated with such celebrities as Clark Gable, Cary Grant, Gary Cooper, and Jean Harlow, as well as with major studio executives such as Jack Warner and Louis B. Mayer. Siegel was notorious for taking loans from movie stars without paying them back.

Las Vegas

In the mid-40s, Siegel relocated to Las Vegas, where he saw many opportunities for gambling. He soon took control of the Flamingo Hotel from William R. Wilkerson, whom he coerced into the sale under threat of death. Subsequently, the Flamingo became syndicate-run. The operation experienced numerous setbacks from the get-go, including loud construction noise, a broken air conditioning system, unfinished luxury rooms, and bad weather. By early 1947, the Flamingo shut down. However, Siegel got a second chance and got to work on renovations and generating positive PR. The Flamingo reopened a couple months later and started turning a profit.

Personal Life and Death

Siegel married his childhood sweetheart, Esta Krakower, in early 1929. Together, they had two daughters named Millicent and Barbara. However, due to Siegel's prolific womanizing, the couple divorced in 1946. During the decade, Siegel was romantically involved with actress Wendy Barrie and organized crime figure Virginia Hill.

On June 20, 1947, Siegel was sitting with his associate Allen Smiley in the Beverly Hills home of Virginia Hill when a sniper shot him multiple times through the window. He was killed instantly. No charges were made, and the killer was never identified. Photos of his corpse were published in papers across the country, and his connection to Las Vegas propelled that city into the national spotlight.

Legacy

As one of the first "celebrity" gangsters, Siegel remains an outsize, mythic figure in the popular imagination. He has been depicted countless times in movies and television, perhaps most famously in Warren Beatty's 1991 biographical drama "Bugsy," with Beatty playing Siegel. He was also depicted on the television series "Boardwalk Empire," "Mob City," and "The Making of the Mob: New York."

Read more: Bugsy Siegel Net Worth

Casey Anthony is a murder suspect who was charged with killing her two-year-old daughter Caylee in 2008. Casey Anthony has a net worth of $10,000. In her trial in mid-2011, she was acquitted of her murder and abuse charges but was found guilty of four misdemeanor counts of lying to law enforcement. The trial and verdict attracted intense scrutiny and outrage throughout national and social media, and later became the focus of a docuseries on the Peacock streaming service.

Casey Anthony was born March 19, 1986 in Warren, Ohio. Throughout childhood, Casey reportedly developed a pattern of lying, including deceiving her parents into thinking she was graduating from high school when she was really short of credits to graduate. When she was 19, she hid her pregnancy (with Caylee) from her parents. When the pregnancy was discovered she refused to reveal the identity of the father, though she later pointed to several young men, including a fiancé who died in a car crash. The true identity of the father remains unknown.

Casey moved back in with her parents and another string of lies ensued, including saying she had a job at Universal Studios.

On July 13, 2009, her parents Cindy and George Anthony discovered that Casey's towed car had a terrible smell in the trunk. Soon after, Casey told her parents she left Caylee with a nanny who then disappeared with Caylee (a whole month prior to Casey telling her parents). The story of the nanny also proved untrue. 31 days after the disappearance of Caylee, the child's disappearance was finally reported to the police. As the search intensified, Casey was arrested when pictures of Casey partying and getting a tattoo that read Bella Vita (beautiful life, in Italian) surfaced—pictures taken during the time Caylee was missing. Casey was back in jail only eight days after being released—this time for forging checks and using a friend's credit card without authorization.

Though the prosecution painted Casey as a dishonest, unfit mother, they could not convince the jury that she was guilty of murdering Caylee and Casey was acquitted in July of 2011. The aftermath of the trial brought about a slew of legislative bills in several states for Caylee's Law, a law that would make it a felony for a parent or legal guardian not to report a missing child within a certain period of time.

Bankruptcy

In January 2013, Casey filed for bankruptcy citing $800,000 in liabilities. She listed around 80 creditors and reported zero income at the time. Her biggest debt, $500,000, was owed to her criminal defense attorney Jose Baez. She also owed $145,000 to the Orange County Sheriff's Office and $70,000 to the IRS.

Early Life

Casey Anthony was born on March 19, 1986 in Warren, Ohio to George and Cindy. Growing up, she established a habit of constantly lying; among her biggest lies was telling her parents that she was graduating from high school. At the age of 19, Anthony got pregnant but concealed the news from her parents. She later refused to reveal the identity of the father when the pregnancy was discovered. Anthony went on to lie about her employment, claiming that she was working at Universal Studios.

Disappearance of Caylee

In June of 2008, then living in Orlando, Florida with her parents, Casey Anthony left with her two-year-old daughter Caylee. When she returned a month later, Caylee was nowhere to be seen. Anthony's mother Cindy reported the girl missing to police, and said that Casey's car smelled of a dead body. An investigation ensued, during which Casey repeatedly lied to detectives that her daughter had been kidnapped by a nanny. Investigators would later find Caylee's skeletal remains inside a laundry bag in a forested area near the Anthony family's home.

Arrests and Charges

Anthony was arrested for the first time in July, and was charged with lying to law enforcement, child neglect, and obstruction of a criminal investigation. She spent a month in jail before being released on bond. In October, Anthony was indicted by a grand jury on multiple charges, including first-degree murder, and was arrested without bond. She pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

Getty

Trial and Verdict

Anthony's trial took place from May to July of 2011, lasting for six weeks in total. The prosecution pursued the death penalty, claiming that Anthony sought to free herself from parental obligations by murdering her daughter, which she accomplished by using chloroform and applying duct tape over Caylee's nose and mouth. Meanwhile, the defense countered by alleging that Caylee had accidentally drowned in the family's swimming pool and that Anthony's father George had disposed of the body. The defense team posited that Anthony's chronic lying stemmed from her dysfunctional upbringing, including alleged sexual abuse by her father.

At the conclusion of the trial in early July, the jury found Anthony not guilty of the charges of first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse, and aggravated manslaughter of a child. However, it did find her guilty of four misdemeanor counts of lying to law enforcement. Because she had credit for time served, Anthony was released on July 17, 2011. Two of her misdemeanor convictions were later overturned by a Florida appellate court in early 2013.

Media Coverage

Anthony's trial and eventual verdict drew intense media attention across the United States, becoming the main topic of many television talk shows. The story was also featured on such newsmagazine programs as "Dateline" and "20/20," ultimately growing into one of the biggest national news draws at the time. Meanwhile, on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, the public expressed strong outrage at the not-guilty verdict, comparing it to the similarly egregious outcome of the O. J. Simpson murder trial. However, others defended the verdict on account of a lack of definitive evidence. In 2022, the murder case and trial were the subjects of a docuseries on the streaming service Peacock. In the three-part series titled "Casey Anthony: Where the Truth Lies," she shared her version of what she says led to Caylee's death, blaming her father in a theory conflicting with the defense's original statement that the child drowned in the family pool. Anthony goes on to say she still has so many questions but no answers.

Post-Trial Life

Soon after her trial verdict, Anthony left for an undisclosed location. A little over a month later, she was ordered to return to Florida to serve a year of supervised probation for a prior, unrelated check-fraud conviction. In early 2013, Anthony filed for bankruptcy. Later in the year, she settled out of court with the non-profit organization Texas EquuSearch, which had sued her for employing its services to find Caylee when Anthony already knew Caylee was dead. In the "Casey Anthony: Where the Truth Lies" docuseries, it was revealed that in the years following her trial, Casey had been working for her defense lawyer, Pat McKenna, and living with his family as she attempted to get back on her feet. It was later reported that McKenna sold the beach home they shared together for around $1 million and that Casey Anthony has been living a low-profile life in West Palm Beach, Florida, ever since. Anthony continues to be largely shunned by the public and the media.

Read more: Casey Anthony Net Worth

Conrad Murray is an American physician who has a net worth of -$500 thousand. Conrad Murray's was the cardiologist and personal physician for Michael Jackson at the time of the singer's death in 2009. Doctor Murray moved to the US in 1980, from his native country Grenada. He obtained a degree in pre-medicine and bio science at Southern Texas University. Coming from an underprivileged background, Murray made the most of every opportunity that came his way. Years later, Murray became an associate director of the interventional cardiology fellowship-training program for Sharp Memorial Hospital. By 1999, Murray opened a private practice in Las Vegas.

Conrad became a personal physician for Michael Jackson for his 2009 tour. Murray was paid $150,000 a month for his services. Two first met in 2006 and soon became friends. This was the beginning of Murray's demise: during the six weeks he worked with Jackson, it was revealed that Murray administrated a daily drip of propofol to the singer. On June 25, 2009, Murray administered the daily dose of the propofol, along with other drugs including muscle relaxant, causing the death Michael Jackson. The case went to trial, starting in September 2011. In November 2011, Murray was charged with involuntary manslaughter of Michael Jackson. He was sentenced to four years in prison at Los Angeles County Jail.

Early Life and Education

Conrad Murray was born on February 19, 1953 in Saint Andrew's Parish, Grenada, where he was raised by his maternal grandparents, both farmers. When he was seven, he moved to Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago to live with his mother Milta. Murray grew up poor, and didn't know his father Andrew until later in life. A physician, Andrew passed away in 2001.

After graduating from high school, Murray volunteered as an elementary school teacher in Trinidad. He then worked as a customs clerk and insurance underwriter in order to save up money for college. Murray went on to relocate to the United States to attend Texas Southern University in Houston, from which he graduated magna cum laude with a pre-med degree. He then enrolled at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee, the same school his father went to. After graduating from that institution, Murray started his internal medicine residency at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and finished it at the Loma Linda University Medical Center in California. Subsequently, he did a cardiology fellowship at the University of Arizona.

Career Beginnings

Following his residencies and fellowship, Murray joined the Sharp Memorial Hospital in San Diego, California as an associate director of the hospital's cardiology fellowship training program. Later, in 1990, he opened his own private practice in Las Vegas, Nevada. Murray would eventually found the Acres Homes Heart and Vascular Institute in Houston in 2006.

Physician of Michael Jackson

Murray first met pop singer Michael Jackson in 2006 in Las Vegas. When Jackson's daughter Paris was sick, Murray treated her. Partly due to this incident, in 2009, Jackson hired Murray to become his personal physician ahead of Jackson's concert tour in July. Jackson insisted that Murray be employed by the tour's promoter AEG Live, but AEG never offered a contract and Murray was never paid.

Reed Saxon-Pool/Getty Images

Michael Jackson's Death

In late June of 2009, only a few weeks after he was hired, Murray administered a lethal dose of the anesthetic propofol to Jackson, who was at his home in Los Angeles. Murray claimed that he found the singer not breathing and gave him CPR, to no avail. In August, the LA County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner concluded that Jackson's death was a homicide caused by acute propofol intoxication combined with benzodiazepines. Murray admitted to administering 25 mg of propofol to help with Jackson's insomnia, despite the fact the drug was not approved as a sleep aid and was to be administered only by those with proper training, which Murray did not have. In early 2011, Murray was charged with involuntary manslaughter for the incident.

People v. Murray

Murray's criminal trial, People v. Murray, commenced in late September in 2011. Held in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, the televised proceeding was presided over by Judge Michael Pastor and featured prosecutors David Walgren and Deborah Brazil. The prosecution lasted for 16 days, while the defense went for eight, resulting in a 24-day trial. At the end of it, on November 7, the jury found Murray guilty of involuntary manslaughter, and he was consequently sentenced to the maximum of four years in prison. Moreover, his Texas medical license was revoked and his licenses in California and Nevada were suspended.

Prison Time

Ultimately, Murray served a little less than two years in prison before being released in late October of 2013. His release was granted on account of both prison overcrowding in California and his demonstrated good behavior.

Other Legal and Financial Troubles

Even before his criminal case for the death of Michael Jackson, Murray was involved in a number of legal troubles. He was a defendant in multiple civil lawsuits, and by 2008 had amassed more than $600,000 in court judgments against him for medical equipment and unpaid rent for his personal practices. Further, Murray was on the brink of losing his medical license in California due to unpaid child support. He filed for bankruptcy in the state in 2002.

Before his criminal conviction in 2011, Murray was sued by Jackson's father Joe in a wrongful death suit. However, the case was dropped in 2012.

Personal Life

Over the years, Murray reportedly had seven children by six different women, only some of whom he was married to. While wed to his second wife, fellow medical school alum Blanche, he was dating and paying the rent for a stripper named Nicole Alvarez. Murray and Alvarez had a son named Che. Among his other relationships, Murray was reportedly seeing a Houston cocktail waitress.

Murray's sundry dalliances and offspring caused him many problems, as he owed child support to the mothers of his children out of wedlock. He was also in arrears on the mortgage of the Las Vegas home where his first wife and their children lived.

Read more: Conrad Murray Net Worth

Joe Exotic is an American former zoo operator and convicted felon and reality TV personality who has a net worth of -$1 million. Joe Exotic who operated the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park in Oklahoma. He rose to fame after the park and the various controversies surrounding it were featured on the 2020 Netflix documentary series, "Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness."

In 2019 he was convicted on 17 federal charges of animal abuse and two counts of murder for hire for his role in the plot to kill Big Cat Rescue CEO Carole Baskin. He was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison.

Joe previously was ordered to pay Baskin a $1 million judgment in a trademark dispute. As a result of that judgment, Baskin was awarded control of his zoo properties. Joe attempted to hide ownership of the zoos by transferring rights to his mother. Baskin was able to overturn this transfer. The judgment also gave Baskin control of several cars and houses on the property. It's highly unlikely that Joe will ever recover financially from the judgement.

Early Life

Joe Exotic was born on March 5, 1963 in Garden City, Kansas. His birth name is Joseph Allen Schreibvogel and his parents are Francis and Shirly Schreibvogel. He grew up in Kansas with his four siblings before the family moved to Texas, where Joe attended high school. After graduating from Pilot Point High School, he joined the Eastvale police department and was promoted to chief of the department in 1982. However, he allegedly got into a car accident in 1985 which left him injured, eventually leading to him leaving the police force. Reports of the accident different across a number of interviews that Joe gave in the decades that followed.

Exotic Animal Career

Following the 1985 accident, Joe moved to West Palm Beach, Florida and began managing a pet store. During this time, Joe was able to handle baby lions for the first time, which developed an interest an exotic animals. He then returned to Texas and eventually opened his own pet store with one of his brothers, G.W., in Arlington in 1986. After his brother died in a car accident in 1997, Joe sold the pet shop and then purchased a 16-acre farm in Oklahoma.

Over the next two years, he developed the land and opened the Garold Wayne Exotic Animal Memorial Park in dedication to his brother in 1999. Two of his brother's pets were the zoo's first inhabitants. Joe then acquired his first two tigers, which had been abandoned, in 2000. He also acquired some of the alligators that had been owned by Michael Jackson. Over the next 20 years, Joe owned and operated the G.W. Zoo. After meeting a traveling musician in 2002 who handled tigers during various illusions he performed, Joe realized that he was also interested in developing a similar act. From that point on, he began acquiring more and more large cats and began staging traveling magic shows, using the name "Joe Exotic" as a stage name.

A key part of the show was allowing audience members to pet the lion cubs and take pictures with them. The shows eventually evolved into cub petting events and he began breeding the cats in order to ensure that he had a consistent supply of cubs. In order to attract more people to the show, he also began dressing more flamboyantly and adopted what became his trademark bleached mullet hairstyle.

Over the years that he owned the zoo, Joe was featured in a number of different documentaries. Most notably, he was featured in the Netflix documentary series, "Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness." The show centered on his rival with Carole Baskin, another large cat owner in Florida. The show was released during the Covid-19 pandemic and became a viral sensation.

Outside of his time running the zoo, Joe also was an aspiring country music artist. Some of his original music can be heard on "Tiger King." He also ran for president in the 2016 election, though he lost. He then ran in the 2018 Libertarian Party primary election for Governor of Oklahoma.

Creative Commons

Legal Troubles and Conviction

Over the course of his life, Joe had several run-ins with the police and federal authorities and ultimately ended up in jail. Many of the investigations surrounding Joe involved his feud with Carole Baskin, as well as his treatment of the animals at his zoo. In 2018, he was arrested and accused of attempting to hired hitman to kill Baskin. He was ultimately found guilty of hiring someone to murder Baskin as well as falsifying wildlife records, and violating the Endangered Species Act by killing five tigers and selling tigers across state lines. He was sentenced to 22 years in prison in January of 2020. He has since sought pardons from President Trump and President Biden, neither of which have been successful.

Personal Life

Joe is openly gay and he has referred to a number of his past partners as his husband, despite only marrying one of them. He was ousted as being gay by one of his brothers in his early life and since then has been very open about being gay, especially in a generally conservative state like Oklahoma. Joe's first known partner was Brian Rhyne who died of complications from HIV in 2001. He later had relationships with various employees of the zoo, including John Finlay and Travis Maldonado. The three were unofficially married to each other within a month of Maldonado's arrival to the zoo in 2013. However, Joe and Finlay had a falling out, which led to Joe legally marrying only Maldonado. In 2017, Maldonado fatally shot himself at the zoo. The same year, Joe married Dillon Passage. They remained together until 2021 when Passage began a relationship with another man.

Outside of his romantic struggles, Joe has also had a variety of health problems over the years. Most recently, in 2021, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer while he was in prison. He was moved to the Federal Medical Center in North Carolina to seek treatment.

Read more: Joe Exotic Net Worth

Paul Castellano was an American mafia boss who had a net worth equal to $20 million at the height of his power in the early 1980s. That's the same as around $50 million today. Paul Castellano was born in Brooklyn, New York in June 1915 and passed away in December 1985. His nicknames included "The Howard Hughes of the Mob" and "Big Paulie". He succeeded Carlo Gambino to become head of the Gambino crime family in New York. In 1985 he was assassinated in an unsanctioned hit by John Gotti.

Paul Castellano was a construction tycoon in New York City and a wholesale meat merchant. He has been portrayed in several films including by Richard C. Sarafian in the 1996 HBO movie "Gotti," Abe Vigoda on the NBC TV movie "Witness to the Mob" in 1998, Sam Coppola in the 2001 TV movie "The Big Heist," and Chazz Palminteri on the 2001 TNT TV movie "Boss of Bosses." His nephew Richard S. Castellano starred in The Godfather movie. Paul Castellano passed away on December 16, 1985 at 70 years old from multiple gunshot wounds.

Wealth

Paul Castellano's precise net worth is very difficult to pin down but, at the height his power in the early 80s, it's estimated that he was worth at least $20 million. That's the same as around $50 million after adjusting for inflation. In his book, Sammy "The Bull" Gravano would later admit that in a typical year mob bosses like Paul and John Gotti would earn $10-15 million.

In 1981, Castellano spent over a million dollars to build an extremely lavish 17-room mansion on Staten Island which later became known as The White House. The house has an Olympic-sized swimming pool, English garden and top-of-the-line Carrara marble throughout. In order to pay for his lavish lifestyle, Castellano began demanding 15% cuts of his capos' earnings, up from the standard 10%. At the time many of his capos were struggling to make ends meet, so Paul's lavish mansion plus the increase in monthly tribute sewed the seeds that would eventually cause him to be assassinated.

Early Life

Castellano was born on June 26, 1915 in Brooklyn, New York City. His parents were Giuseppe and Concetta Castellano, both Italian immigrants. Giuseppe was a butcher and a member of the Mangano crime family, which later developed into the Gambino crime family. When Castellano was in eighth grade, he dropped out of school in order to work as a butcher. He was arrested for the first time in 1934 when he was 19 years old for robbing a haberdasher. He served three months in jail, which helped increase his credibility and reputation with the mob.

Boss of Bosses

Castellano's sister, Catherine, married one of their cousins, Carlo Gambino, in 1932. Gambino was a part of the Mangano crime family, as was Castellano after he became an official member in the 1940s. Castellano become a capo under boss Albert Anastasia. After Anastasia was killed, Castellano's brother-in-law, Gambino, was elevated to boss.

In 1957, Castellano attended the Apalachin meeting in Apalachin, New York, a historic meeting of the American mob. After police raided the meeting, Castellano was one of over 60 high-ranking mobster that were arrested. He subsequently spent a year in prison on a contempt charge. Then, in January of 1960, he was sentenced to five years in prison for conspiracy to withhold information. However, his conviction was revered by an Appeals Court in November of 1960.

Over the course of his career, Castellano focused much of his time on establishing legitimate businesses. However, many of his businesses were strengthened do to his ties to the mob. During his early career, Castellano launched Dial Poultry, a poultry distribution business that supplied 300 butchers in New York City. He also was very involved in the construction concrete business. He was in charge of handing the Gambino family's interest in the "Concrete Club," a club of contractors selected by The Commission, the governing body of the Italian-American mafia, to handle large scale construction contracts. In return the, the selected contractors would provide The Commission with a kickback valued at two-percent of the overall contract.

Getty Images

In October of 1976, Carlo Gambino died after appointing Castellano to succeed him over his underboss, Aniello Dellacroce. This effectively split the Gambino family into two separate factions – with some supporting Castellano and others supporting Dellacroce. Over the next few years, Castellano ordered the murders of a number of Gambino associates and capos, further dividing the family.

In 1978, Castellano made an agreement between the Gambino family and the Westies, an Irish-American gang from Hell's Kitchen in Manhattan. The agreement benefitted the Gambino family as they now had access to hitmen who were not directly connected to the family while the Westies wanted the Gambino family to provide them with protection from some of the other Italian mafia families in the area.

At the height of his power, Castellano built a large and lavish 17-room mansion in Staten Island. It was designed to resemble the White House and featured Carrara marble and in English garden. After completing the mansion, Castellano became somewhat of a recluse and rarely ventured outside the mansion. Instead, the capos of the family would visit the mansion to provide information and receive orders.

However, Castellano could not escape various problems with the law. In 1984, he was indicted on federal racketeering charges, which included several murder charges as well as extortion, narcotics trafficking, theft, and prostitution. He was released on $2 million bail. In February of 1985, he was again arrested on racketeering though was again released on $3 million bail. A few months later, he was indicted on loansharking charges and tax evasion, though again did not face any jail time.

The same year, John Gotti, the protégé of Dellacroce, became dissatisfied with Castellano's leadership. Two weeks after Dellacroce died, he began orchestrating Castellano's take-down. Castellano had further alienated himself from former allies by not attending Dellacroce's wake, a massive insult to the Dellacroce family. In December of 1985, Castellano was driven to a prearranged meeting in Midtown Manhattan. A hit team waited there while Gotti observed the scene from across the street. When Castellano exited the car, one of the hitman ran up and shit him several times. Gotti then drove over to view Castellano's body.

Two weeks following Castellano's murder, Gotti was elected the new Gambino boss. Seven years later, Gotti was convicted of numerous racketeering charges, including the 1985 Castellano murder. He was sentenced to life in federal prison.

Given the prominent place of the Gambino crime family in the mob history, Castellano has been portrayed in films and television series numerous times before. He was portrayed by Richard C. Sarafian in the 1996 HBO film, "Gotti." He was also portrayed in the television films, "Witness to the Mob, "The Big Heist," and "Boss of Bosses." He was also played by actor Donald John Volpenhein in the biopic, "Gotti," in 2018 and was the subject of the Netflix documentary, "Fear City: New York vs The Mafia" in 2020.

Personal Life

In 1937, Castellano married his childhood sweetheart, Nina Manno. The couple had three sons and one daughter together. He also had an affair with live-in Colombian maid, Gloria Olarte.

Read more: Paul Castellano Net Worth

Jho Low is a Malaysian fugitive criminal businessman who has a net worth of $150 million. Jho Low is wanted in connection with the 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal. He is alleged to have been the mastermind behind a global scheme involving the systematic embezzlement of $4.5 billion from the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB. Claiming his innocence, Low has contended that he is being targeted by Malaysian authorities due to his support of former Prime Minister Najib Razak, himself convicted as part of the 1MDB scandal.

As of this writing, he is a fugitive wanted by Malaysian authorities for his connection with the 1MDB scandal. He is believed to be hiding out in rural China. Soon after graduating from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton Business School, he managed to convince the Prime Minister of Malaysia to launch a sovereign wealth fund that Low would control. The resulting 1 Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal ultimately ended with Jho Low being charged with money laundering and diverting more than $4.5 billion with other conspirators.

Jho Low diverted the 1MDB money to finance an incredibly lavish lifestyle for himself and Prime Minster Najib Razak. Low acquired a lavish portfolio of real estate that included mansions all over the world, a private jet and a $250 million yacht. Along the way he funneled money to help keep Prime Minister Razak in power and his wife Rosmah stocked with hundreds of millions of dollars worth of clothes and jewelry.

Jho also used the stolen money to maintain friendships with many major entertainment super stars including Alicia Keys and husband Swizz Beatz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jamie Foxx and Miranda Kerr. He actually dated Miranda Kerr and famously gave her tens of millions of dollars worth of jewelry which she ultimately was forced to return.

Through his friendship with DiCaprio Jho Low financed the movie "The Wolf of Wall Street." Much of the film's profits were ultimately seized by the government of Malaysia.

Early Life and Education

Jho Low was born on November 4, 1981 in George Town, Malaysia to an affluent Malaysian Chinese family. He is the youngest of three siblings. Low was educated at Chung Ling High School and the International School of Penang (Uplands) in Malaysia, and then at the prestigious Harrow School in London, England. At the latter institution, he hobnobbed with many students from elite families. Following his time in London, Low moved to the United States to attend the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Career Beginnings in Business

In the US, Low began managing funds for his family and friends. He also established an investment group through which he made a number of lucrative deals. By 2010, Low had consolidated his fortune into the company Jynwel Capital. As the steward of the company, he developed close relationships with some of the world's biggest sovereign wealth funds, including the Kuwait Investment Authority and the UAE's Mubadala. Through his company Jynwel, Low has been involved in such major transactions as the $660 million purchase of New York City's Park Lane Hotel and the $2.2 billion takeover of Coastal Energy.

Getty

1Malaysia Development Berhad Scandal 

Low is most notorious for his involvement with the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad. In 2015, a leaked document revealed that former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak had funneled more than $700 million from the company into his personal bank accounts, with Low being the alleged mastermind behind the scheme. Low helped to embezzle the money and move it internationally through a number of shell companies and offshore bank accounts. Later, the US Department of Justice calculated that over $4.5 billion had been diverted from 1MDB, and that the money had been used to purchase a host of luxury items and properties. Low also invested $100 million of the funds in the production of Martin Scorsese's Oscar-nominated film "The Wolf of Wall Street." Moreover, it was found that attempts were made for the embezzled money to be used for political donations and lobbying in the US.

The 1MDB scandal caused an uproar in Malaysia, prompting protests from the public and a purge of dissidents from the Malaysian government. On the international stage, at least six countries opened investigations into financial and criminal activity connected to 1MDB. In the US, rapper Pras and former Goldman Sachs chairman Tim Leissner were among those charged for their involvement in the scandal. Later, following the election of new Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad in 2018, former Prime Minister Najib Razak was charged and convicted for his role in the scandal and was sentenced to 12 years in prison.

Fugitive

In 2018, Malaysian Prime Minister Mohamad issued warrants for Low's arrest. Claiming his innocence and contending that Mohamad and the authorities are after him for political reasons, Low became an international fugitive. He is believed to be living in China, where he remains involved with some of his companies; he also has been reported to have Cypriot citizenship. Meanwhile, a federal criminal case against him is ongoing in the US. In 2021, Low was charged for running a back-channel campaign to get Trump's administration to drop its investigation of his involvement in the 1MDB scandal.

Personal Life

Before becoming a fugitive, Low was in romantic relationships with Taiwanese singer-songwriter and actress Elva Hsiao and Victoria's Secret model Miranda Kerr. He also had associations with such celebrities as Leonardo DiCaprio, Jamie Foxx, Paris Hilton, Alicia Keys, and Busta Rhymes, many of whom he gave lavish gifts funded by embezzled 1MDB money. In 2017, Low's ex-girlfriend Kerr gave the US government $8 million in jewelry she had been gifted by Low. Other celebrities have surrendered their gifts as well, including DiCaprio, who gave back paintings by Picasso and Basquiat.

Read more: Jho Low Net Worth

Lee Harvey Oswald was an U.S. Marine veteran who is responsible for assassinating President John F. Kennedy. At the time of his death, Lee Harvey Oswald had a net worth of $250.

Early Life

Oswald was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on October 18, 1939 to parents Robert Edward Lee Oswald Sr. and Marguerite Frances Claverie, though his father died of a heart attack two months before he was born. His mother then moved the family to Dallas, Texas where Oswald began the first grade in 1945. Oswald often switched schools and was described as withdrawn and temperamental as a child. At one point, his mother took him to live briefly in New York, where he attended seventh grade. His frequent truancy led to him being assessed by a psychiatrist at a juvenile reformatory, who diagnosed Oswald with personality disturbance with schizoid features and attributed many of Oswald's problems to the lack of affection he received from his mother.

Oswald never completed high school, though he had attended 12 different schools by the time he decided to drop out at age 17 to enlist in the Marines.

Military Career

Oswald enlisted in the Marines in October of 1956, a week after his seventeenth birthday. He completed training and was assigned to Marine Air Control Squadron 1 at the Naval Air Facility Atsugi near Tokyo, Japan. His time in the Marines was also turbulent, as he got into trouble a number of times. He fought with a sergeant at one point, which led to his demotion from private first class to private and a brief term of imprisonment.

Soviet Union

While in the Marines, Oswald taught himself basic Russian. In 1959, he received a hardship discharge from the Marines, claiming that he needed to go home to take care of his mother. He was then placed in the United States Marine Corps Reserve. Shortly thereafter, he traveled to the Soviet Union. Upon arrival, he expressed his desire to become a Soviet citizen and claimed that he was a communist. He was met with resistance by the Soviet officers and his initial application for citizenship was denied. In order to remain in Russia longer, he purposely injured himself, which landed him in a Soviet hospital for an additional week. He then appeared before the United States embassy in Moscow to declare that he wanted to denounce his U.S. citizenship which led to a change in his discharge status to undesirable.

Oswald was allowed to remain in the Soviet Union, though he did not get to attend Moscow State University as he expected. Instead, he was sent to Minsk, Belarus to work at the Gorizont Electronics factory. He was given a subsidized apartment and his payment from the factory allowed him to live a comfortable life by Soviet standards. However, Oswald began to grow tired of his life there and in 1962 applied at the U.S. embassy to repatriate. He left for the U.S. in June of 1961.

After arriving back in the United States, Oswald worked a number of jobs but had a hard time keeping anything stable, as he often disliked the work or did not get along with his boss or coworkers.

Over the next couple of years, Oswald's life and beliefs became more chaotic and disturbing. Though he was not charged at the time, he later was found to be responsible for the attempted assassination of Edwin Walker, a retired U.S. Major General. Walker was an outspoken anti-Communist and Oswald's dislike of him was later confirmed by some of Oswald's friends and acquaintances.

(STRINGER/AFP via Getty Images)

Assassination

On November 22, 1963, Oswald shot and killed John F. Kennedy from the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository as Kennedy drove by motorcade through Dallas. He later shot and killed Dallas police officer J.D. Tippit on the street. He was the arrested for the murder of Tippit and soon after charged with the assassination of JFK. Oswald denied his involvement in the crime. Two days later, Oswald was fatally shot by local nightclub owner Jack Ruby on live television in the basement of Dallas Police Headquarters. After an investigation, the Warren Commission concluded in September of 1964 that Oswald had acted alone in his assassination of JFK.

After his death, it was challenging to find a cemetery willing to accept Oswald's remains, though the Rose Hill Cemetery in Fort Worth, Texas eventually agreed. In the late 1970s, a claim surfaced that a look-alike Russian agent had actually been buried in the place of Oswald. The body was exhumed and it was confirmed by dental records that it was in fact Oswald. The remains were buried in a new coffin because of water damage to the original. In 2010, the funeral home responsible for the original coffin held a private auction during which the coffin sold to an anonymous bidder for almost $88,000. However, Oswald's brother successfully sued the funeral home to reclaim the coffin.

The assassination of JFK still inspires many conspiracy theories today, as a large number of Americans do not fully believe the official version of events that investigators have produced.

Personal Life

While in Belarus, Oswald had a relationship with co-worker Ella German. The two dated throughout 1960 but their relationship fell apart when German learned Oswald was also seeing other women. When Oswald proposed in 1961, German refused. He soon after met 19 year old student, Marina Prusakova. They married after six weeks and had a child together soon afterward. The small family moved to the U.S. in mid-1961.

Read more: Lee Harvey Oswald Net Worth

Billy McFarland is an American convicted felon and former CEO who has a net worth of -$26 million. Billy McFarland is most famous for organizing the disastrous Fyre Festival which was supposed to be held in April 2017 but turned into one of the most infamous concert disasters in history. Due to the ultimately aborted event, which defrauded investors of millions and left many attendees stranded, he was arrested and charged with wire fraud and sentenced to six years in prison. McFarland was released in early 2022 after serving just over four years.

In the wake of the disastrous festival, Billy and his partner, rapper Ja Rule, were quickly sued for $100 million.

In March 2018 Billy pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud in federal court. He admitted to using fake documents to secure $26 million in funding. He eventually agreed to pay $26 million in restitution and was sentenced to six years in prison.

Billy was released from prison in May 2022.

Early Life and Education

Billy McFarland was born in 1991 in New York City, New York and was raised by his real-estate developer parents in a project in Millburn, New Jersey. There, he went to the Pingry School, from which he graduated in 2010. For his higher education, McFarland enrolled at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, but ended up dropping out toward the end of his freshman year.

Career Beginnings

After leaving college, McFarland founded the online advertising platform Spling, which he served as the CEO of. The company proved to be short-lived. Following this, McFarland co-founded the card-based membership club Magnises with rapper Ja Rule. Although the card was marketed to millennials as being comparable to American Express's Black Card,' Magnise's card was not in fact a charge card, and could only be used it to make purchases by linking it to a preexisting credit card account. The company ceased operations in 2017, after which it was retroactively considered a scam.

Fyre Festival

With Ja Rule, McFarland co-founded the Fyre Festival in 2017. Advertised as a luxury music festival, it was meant to promote a music talent book application for the parent company Fyre Media.

Not long after launching the concept for Fyre Festival, McFarland claimed in a letter sent to potential investors that the concert business was already worth $90 million. He justified that valuation by alleging that the company had received millions of sponsorship dollars and ticket sales. Authorities would later prove that at that point the company had generated just $57,000 in revenue.

The festival was scheduled to take place in the spring on the island of Great Exuma in the Bahamas. Numerous models and social media influencers took to Instagram to advertise the event, including Kendall Jenner, Hailey Baldwin, Emily Ratajkowski, and Bella Hadid, all of whom were also expected to attend.

Fyre Festival was advertised as a custom-built tropical paradise featuring glamorous models where guests would stay in luxury villas on a private island eating meals prepared by 5-star chefs. VIP tickets to the festival cost $49,000. The average day pass cost $450.

The event went viral when ticket holders arrived on the island to find a disorganized third world disaster. Before it could begin, myriad administration and management issues hobbled its progress. Having paid hundreds of thousands of dollars, guests arrived to tents and boxed sandwiches instead of luxury villas and gourmet dishes. There were also a slew of problems related to security, medical services, staffing, and talent relations. The festival was ultimately postponed after the first night, with attendees being sent back to Miami, Florida.

Hulu Documentary Payday

Billy appeared in Hulu's January 2019 documentary "Fyre Fraud". He reportedly was approached by Netflix to appear in their version of a Fyre documentary but Netflix declined when he asked to be paid. Hulu reportedly ended up paying Billy $250,000.

(Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)

Criminal Aftermath

As a result of the festival debacle – which saw a number of attendees stranded in the Bahamas when many flights back to Miami were canceled – McFarland and co-organizer Ja Rule were sued in a $100 million class-action lawsuit. On top of that lawsuit, six federal and four individual suits were also filed. In June of 2017, McFarland was arrested and charged with wire fraud; he was released on July 1 on $300,000 bail. However, while on bail, he continued to commit fraud via a new scam known as NYC VIP, which he used to sell fraudulent tickets to events such as the Met Gala and Coachella.

Before a federal court in Manhattan in March of 2018, McFarland pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud. Additionally, he conceded to using fraudulent documents to draw investors to his company. As punishment, McFarland was sentenced to six years in prison and was ordered to pay $26 million in restitution. In the spring of 2020, he requested compassionate release from prison in order to avoid contracting COVID-19, arguing that the virus posed an added threat to him due to his asthma. The request was ultimately denied. McFarland was eventually moved to the RRM New York facility, where he tested positive for COVID-19. In the spring of 2022, he was released early from prison and sent to a halfway house ahead of his release in August.

In the Media

The massive logistical failure of the Fyre Festival and its legal repercussions for McFarland became the catalyst for two documentary films released in early 2019. The first was Hulu's "Fyre Fraud," written and directed by Jenner Furst and Julia Willoughby Nason. The film consists of testimony from victims of the festival, as well as from whistleblowers and other insiders. Just days later, Netflix released "Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened," which was directed by Chris Smith. Notably, the film was co-produced by Jerry Media, the same social media company that promoted the Fyre Festival and helped cover up its fraudulence. Both the Hulu and Netflix documentaries earned positive reviews from critics, and both also received Emmy Award nominations.

Read more: Billy McFarland Net Worth

Viktor Bout is a prolific international arms dealer who has a net worth of $50 million. Over the course of several decades, primarily the 1980s and 1990s, Viktor Bout allegedly used his numerous air transport companies to smuggle potentially billions of dollars worth of weapons from Eastern Europe to the Middle East and Africa following the fall of the Soviet Union.

"One of the world's most successful and sophisticated arms traffickers." – United States prosecutors, describing Viktor.

In 2008, he was arrested in Thailand on charges of terrorism. In 2011 was convicted in the United States of conspiracy to kill US officials and citizens. Bout was subsequently sentenced to 25 years in prison. Viktor was portrayed by Nicolas Cage in the 2005 film "Lord of War." On December 8, 2022 Viktor was traded back to Russia in a prisoner swap in exchange for WNBA player Brittney Griner.

Early Life

Viktor Bout was born on January 13, 1967 in Dushanbe in what was then the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic of the USSR. Not many other details about his origins or upbringing are known, and even his date of birth is not entirely certain.

Military Service

Bout graduated from the Military Institute of Foreign Languages and served in the Soviet Armed Forces. Through his training, he became fluent in Portuguese, Persian, Arabic, English, and French in addition to Russian. Bout reportedly served as a translator for the Soviet Army due to his polyglot status. He was allegedly discharged in 1991 upon the collapse of the USSR.

Career Beginnings

Depending on the source, Bout had different positions following his discharge from the army. According to his personal website, he launched an air freight business called Air Cess that operated out of Angola. The business provided services to the US, France, and the United Nations. In 1994, Bout sent shipments to the pre-Taliban government of Afghanistan. According to other sources, Bout also spent time as a GRU major, a KGB operative, or an officer in the Soviet Air Forces.

Arms Trafficking

Between 1996 and 1998, Bout reportedly smuggled many different kinds of weapons from Bulgaria to Africa, possibly with the intent of being used by UNITA in the Angolan Civil War. Meanwhile, in Liberia, he was accused of supplying warlord Charles Taylor with arms to use in that country's first civil war. Bout was also accused of arms trafficking during the Yugoslav Wars.

In 2004, Bout and his associate Richard Chichakli established an airline company in Tajikistan to carry out money laundering activities. During this time, he allegedly supplied arms to a number of groups in Africa, and also allegedly sent surface-to-air missiles to Kenya for use in an attack on an Israeli aircraft. Among his other activities, Bout was reported to have a substantial commercial presence in Libya. However, because he was constantly on the move, operating multiple companies, and often re-registering his aircraft, authorities were never able to mount a definitive case against him for arms smuggling in Africa.

Arrest and Extradition

Charged in the Central African Republic in 2000 for forging documents, Bout was convicted in absentia; the charges were eventually dropped. Two years later, Belgian authorities issued an Interpol red notice on Bout on charges of money laundering. However, the case was ultimately dismissed due to Bout's lack of a fixed residence and the fact that the case couldn't be prosecuted in a timely manner. In the summer of 2004, Bout's assets in the US were frozen under an Executive Order.

In early 2008, Bout was targeted by a sting operation organized by the Drug Enforcement Administration. He was subsequently arrested in Bangkok, Thailand on an Interpol red notice issued by the US. Later in the year, an extradition hearing took place in Bangkok. In August of 2009, the Bangkok Criminal Court ruled in favor of Bout; however, an appeal by the US the following year reversed the decision. As a result, Bout was extradited to the US in late 2010. This caused an uproar from the Russian government, which claimed the extradition was politically motivated and illegal. The Russian government responded by imposing sanctions on anyone involved in the extradition.

(Photo by U.S. Department of Justice via Getty Images)

Prosecution and Conviction

Following his arrest in Bangkok, the US Department of Justice charged Bout with conspiracy to kill US citizens and officials; conspiracy to supply resources to a foreign terrorist organization; and conspiracy to deliver anti-aircraft missiles. More charges were filed against him in early 2010. Bout was ultimately convicted by a federal court in Manhattan in November of 2011. In April of the following year, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Brittney Griner Exchange

In July 2022, it was reported that the Biden administration had offered Bout to Russia in exchange for the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner, who was being held on charges related to drug possession. On December 8, 2022, that exchange came to fruition.

In the Media

Bout has influenced or been the subject of a number of media properties. In 2005, he was the focus of the third chapter of Nick Kochan's book "The Washing Machine." The same year, Bout served as the inspiration for the crime film "Lord of War," starring Nicolas Cage as an international arms trafficker. Bout has also been the subject of the 2014 documentary "The Notorious Mr. Bout" and episodes of the documentary series "Manhunt: Kill or Capture" and "Damian Lewis: Spy Wars."

Read more: Viktor Bout Net Worth