FBI Investigating Woman Who Allegedly Faked Wealthy Heiress Persona, Mingled with Trump at Mar-a-Lago

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

U.S. officials are reportedly investigating a woman who allegedly claimed to be a member of the famed Rothschild family during visits to Mar-a-Lago, where she met former President Donald Trump and mingled with members of his inner circle.

In May 2021, Anna de Rothschild drove a new Mercedes Benz AMG G63 through the gates of Mar-a-Lago — Trump's Palm Beach, Fla., home that is now the epicenter of a criminal investigation into the former president's alleged mishandling of classified White House documents — during one of multiple trips to the property.

She told guests and members of Trump's private club that she was an heiress of the wealthy European banking family with ties to elite real estate developers, according to a report by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP).

The woman later posed for photos with the former president and a close ally of his, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, on a golf course near Mar-a-Lago in addition to meeting with Donald Trump Jr.'s fiancée, Kimberly Guilfoyle, and other Trump associates.

RELATED: Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago Home Searched by FBI: 'The Mood Was Pure Shock'

"Anna, you're a Rothschild — you can afford $1 million for a picture with you and Trump," a man said as she swung a golf club in video footage obtained by the Post-Gazette.

But Anna is not a Rothschild. In fact, her name is Inna Yashchyshyn and she's reportedly a Russian-speaking Ukrainian immigrant and the 33-year-old daughter of an Illinois truck driver.

"It wasn't just dropping the family name. She talked about vineyards and family estates and growing up in Monaco," former investment banker and author John LeFevre told OCCRP of Yashchyshyn's alleged ruse.

"Everyone was eating it up," added LeFevre, who said he met poolside with the woman he was told was a Rothschild heiress.

RELATED: The FBI's Mar-a-Lago Search Stemmed from an Informant: Report

As part of its investigation, the FBI obtained copies of fake passports from the U.S. and Canada that bear Yashchyshyn's photo and the name she used at Mar-a-Lago.

Joe Raedle/Getty Mar-a-Lago Club

The Post-Gazette also published images of a Florida driver's license for "Anna de Rothschild" that indicates she used an address for a $13 million Miami Beach mansion where she has never lived.

"I think there is some misunderstanding," Yashchyshyn told the news outlet during an interview, in which she claimed she didn't know Anna de Rothschild and that the documents with that name were fabricated by a former business partner who intended to harm her.

"That's all fake," she said, "and nothing happened."

Valeriy Tarasenko, a Moscow-raised businessman who lives in Florida and allowed Yashchyshyn to stay at his condo and care for his teenage daughter, said he spoke with the FBI agents about her multiple visits to Mar-a-Lago, where he claims she hoped to make Trump family connections and raise money.

RELATED: Lindsey Graham Warns of 'Riots in the Streets' if Trump Is Prosecuted in Classified Docs Probe

Yashchyshyn used "her fake identity as Anna de Rothschild to gain access to and build relationships with U.S. politician[s], including but not limited to Donald Trump, Lindsey Graham, and Eric Greitens," Tarasenko said in an affidavit, according to the Post-Gazette.

Greitens is a former Missouri governor who was defeated in the state's GOP Senate primary earlier this year amid scandal.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer.

According to the Post-Gazette, Yashchyshyn was invited to a fundraiser for Greitens at a mansion near Mar-a-Lago that's also owned by former President Trump. The newspaper published a photo of a page in his book, The Heart and the Fist, that's dedicated to the woman who claimed to be a Rothschild.

"For Anna," he reportedly wrote on the title page, "stay strong!"