Someone get Ava DuVernay, Jordan Peele or Kathryn Bigelow on the phone because we have the most bonkers film premise to pitch.
Yesterday, Pix 11 reported that in August 2016, a woman in New York allegedly tried to kill her look-alike with poisoned cheesecake in a bizarre attempt to steal the victim's identity, according to prosecutors.
Brooklynite Viktoria Nasyrova, 42, allegedly brought a cheesecake baked with drug phenazepam - a type of tranquilizer developed in the Soviet Union in the '70s - inside and took to the victim's home in Queens.
The 35-year-old victim reportedly ate the cake but went for a lie down after she started to feel unwell.
Her last memory? Seeing Nasyrova sitting beside her.
The next day, the victim found herself dressed in lingerie with pills scattered around her body, a scene detectives believe was created to make it look as if she'd overdosed, prosecutors said.
'This is a bizarre and twisted crime that could have resulted in the death of a Queens woman, whose only fault was that she shared similar features with the defendant,' Queens District Attorney Richard Brown explained.
'Offering a gift of a cheesecake, the defendant is alleged to have laced the dessert with a Russian drug and presented it to the unsuspecting victim.'
To make matters even weirder, on returning home from the hospital, the victim found her passport, employment authorisation card, jewellery, and cash had all gone missing.
Detectives say that both women have the same dark hair, the same skin complexion, and both speak Russian. However, it is not entirely clear why Nasyrova allegedly poisoned the woman.
Nasyrova was arrested on 20 March, at which time police found the victim's passport, employment card and ring. She faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted.
Moral of the story? Don't take baked goods from strangers.
Katie O'Malley is the Site Director on ELLE UK. On a daily basis you’ll find Katie managing all digital workflow, editing site, video and newsletter content, liaising with commercial and sales teams on new partnerships and deals (eg Nike, Tiffany & Co., Cartier etc), implementing new digital strategies and compiling in-depth data traffic, SEO and ecomm reports. In addition to appearing on the radio and on TV, as well as interviewing everyone from Oprah Winfrey to Rishi Sunak PM, Katie enjoys writing about lifestyle, culture, wellness, fitness, fashion, and more.
