Next month, the fate of an international scammer who victims say crisscrossed the United States pretending to be an Irish heiress will likely be decided. Extradition to the United Kingdom is a possible outcome.
The hearing concerning the claims that Marianne Smyth, a 54-year-old, stole about $170,000 from five or more victims in Northern Ireland between 2008 and 2010 will take place in a federal court in Maine. According to authorities in the UK, Smyth took a victim’s promised investment funds and used them to buy a house, but she never really did anything with the money.
Judge John Nivison of the United States Magistrate Court took the matter under consideration on Wednesday and promised to rule by May 1. If he decides to deport her, the matter will be sent to the Secretary of State for further consideration.
According to court records, she was wanted for her arrest in 2021. She was apprehended in Maine in February. In Dover-Foxcroft, she is being detained in the Piscataquis County Jail.
Legal counsel for Smyth, Kaylee Folster, asked for a hearing on the accusations and maintained that her client is innocent in a court document.
One of Smyth’s victims was Johnathan Walton, who 2021 launched the podcast “Queen of the Con” in an effort to alert others about her deceitful practices. After spending almost two years behind bars, she was finally found guilty of robbing Walton of tens of thousands of dollars.
According to what he heard from Smyth, she required the funds for bail after her incarceration, and her bank account was closed. Walton thought he would get his money back because Smyth informed him her Irish aristocratic family owed her $7 million.
Walton allegedly paid Smyth expensive meals and vacations when they were in Los Angeles, and the two became close over many years. However, the tale started to fall apart when Walton learned she is in prison for embezzling $200,000 from her job at a high-end travel firm.
According to Walton, scores of victims from New York to California have come forward with tips via the podcast. The accusations against Smyth range from allegations that she started a phony charity for Ukraine to claims that she is Jennifer Aniston’s closest friend. The people she victimized claim she often altered her look and identity.
