British woman faces 50 years in US prison after allegedly stealing £30k worth of wine from luxury restaurant
Six bottles of wine, valued at around $41,500 (£31,500,) are still missing.
A British woman is facing up to 50 years in prison in the US after allegedly helping to orchestrate the theft of rare wine worth thousands from a luxury Virginia restaurant.
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Natali Ray, a 56-year-old writer and mother from Herne Bay in Kent, was arrested after staff at the L'Auberge Provençale Inn & Restaurant accused her of stealing eight prized bottles from its cellar on November 19.
The male accomplice escaped with the haul and remains at large.
According to court records, Ray has been charged with grand larceny, conspiracy to commit grand larceny and defrauding an innkeeper.
Police have said Ray posed as the PA to a wealthy Canadian client interested in booking a $20,000 dinner.
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CCTV has shown a woman, who introduced herself as Stephanie Baker to staff, wearing a disguise and wig.
Staff then escorted her to the wine cellar, where she allegedly kept the sommelier chatting while her partner slipped bottles into a coat fitted with hidden pockets - replacing them with cheap replicas.
Sommelier Christian Borel, whose family has owned the inn since 1981, said Ray "knew the phraseology" and used subtle cues to manoeuvre him away from certain areas, giving her accomplice time to grab the bottles.
A chase ensued after staff raised the alarm. Waiter Matthew Leader allegedly sprinted after the suspects and managed to grab Ray, with the man managing to escape in his SUV.
Two bottles - a 2019 Échézeaux and a 2021 Grands Échézeaux - were later found discarded nearby.
Six others, valued at around $41,500 (£31,500,) are still missing.
Ray reportedly told staff she had been forced into the heist after being abducted by the man she met on a cruise.
The divorced mother-of-three previously ran the Bay View Hotel in Herne Bay and lists a Creative Writing degree on her Linkedin.
She is being held at the Northwestern Regional Adult Detention Centre and is due in court on December 3.
Sheriff Travis Sumption said Ray faced up to 50 years in prison if convicted: “Hopefully this … will inspire fewer people to steal things like this. Because one of them is very much in trouble right now. I know they were partially successful, but someone’s facing a lot of prison time over this.”