It’s not quite clear why the agency took Sorokin into custody at this time. After being sentenced to four to 12 years in prison in 2019, Sorokin was released from prison early for good behavior in mid-February. Although Sorokin had overstayed her visa and was at risk of being deported when her criminal case had finished, her attorney is currently in the midst of an appeal—a fact which legal experts say should allow Sorokin to remain in the U.S. legally. Besides that, Sorokin has been out of prison for six weeks now, and court records show that she had been reporting to her parole officer.
But even with Sorokin’s whereabouts and legal status up in the air, her business ventures are apparently still moving forward—including her upcoming apparel line with former Hood By Air designer Paul Cupo. “We still have a goal in motion and she’s gonna be happy to see progress done while she’s unavailable,” Cupo said, upon learning that Sorokin was being detained by ICE. “I’m definitely not about to abandon her or the project because of a minor speed bump.”
Only when speaking about a white woman with resources and visibility would someone refer to being in ICE custody for a full week for an as-yet-unknown reason as simply “a minor speed bump.”