A federal court has ruled that convicted scammer Marianne Smyth should be extradited to the United Kingdom to face charges of stealing over $170,000 from victims in Northern Ireland between 2008 and 2010. Smyth, who has presented herself as an Irish heiress, a witch, and a psychic, has been held in a Maine jail awaiting the decision on her extradition. US Magistrate Judge John Nivison determined that there was enough evidence to certify her extradition to the UK and she will remain in the custody of the US Marshals Service pending a decision by Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Smyth faces multiple charges including fraud and theft under UK and Northern Ireland law. She is accused of promising to invest money for victims that she never delivered on, as well as arranging to sell a victim a home but pocketing the funds instead. Arrest warrants for Smyth were issued in Northern Ireland earlier in the decade, leading to her eventual arrest in Maine. The evidence presented in court concerning Smyth’s fraudulent activities with individuals was deemed sufficient to sustain the fraud and theft charges that form the basis of the extradition request.
The judge’s ruling that Smyth should be extradited marks what could be the conclusion of a strange saga involving Smyth’s victims depicting her as a skilled con artist and an experienced grifter. One of Smyth’s victims, podcaster Johnathan Walton, played a key role in exposing her crimes by using his podcast platform to gather information from other individuals who had been scammed by Smyth. Walton and Smyth had developed a close relationship in Los Angeles, with Smyth spinning tales of her impending inheritance of $7 million from her Irish family, only for Walton to discover she had been convicted of stealing $200,000 from a previous employer.
Smyth’s case shares similarities with that of Anna Sorokin, another scammer who was convicted of impersonating a German heiress to fund her luxurious lifestyle. Smyth’s victims have described her as engaging in various deceptive activities, including starting a fake charity and pretending to be a cancer patient or a close friend of Jennifer Aniston. Despite presenting herself as an Irish heiress, Smyth is actually American and her true identity was uncovered when Walton and others began to piece together her web of lies.
The extradition of Smyth to the UK may bring closure to the victims who have suffered financial losses as a result of her schemes. Smyth’s attorney has declined to comment on the case, and Smyth’s extradition to face trial in the UK will depend on the decision of Secretary of State Antony Blinken. As the legal process unfolds, more details of Smyth’s fraudulent activities and the impact on her victims are likely to come to light, shedding further light on the complex web of deceit that she wove. Smyth’s actions serve as a cautionary tale about the dangers of falling prey to skilled con artists and the importance of verifying individuals’ claims before entrusting them with money or investments.
