Briton ‘staged audacious wine heist’ at luxury US restaurant

A British woman has been arrested in the US after allegedly masterminding a theft at a historic wine cellar, where eight prized bottles worth tens of thousands of pounds were stolen.

Natali Ray, 56, from Herne Bay in Kent, is accused of carrying out the heist at the L’Auberge Provençale Inn & Restaurant in Virginia on Wednesday, November 19, alongside a male accomplice who escaped the scene.

Court records show Ray has been charged with grand larceny, conspiracy to commit grand larceny and defrauding an innkeeper. If convicted, she faces up to 50 years in prison.

The divorced mother-of-three is said to have worn a wig and introduced herself as “Stephanie Baker”, claiming to be a PA to a wealthy Canadian businesswoman interested in booking a 25-person dinner, a booking that typically costs around $20,000.

After gaining the confidence of staff, Ray was allegedly escorted to the wine cellar, where she is said to have distracted the sommelier with small talk while her accomplice moved into position.

According to reports in the Daily Mail, the man then slipped eight valuable bottles into specially adapted pockets in his coat, replacing them with cheap replicas to avoid detection.

CCTV shows a man and woman being guided through the restaurant and down to the cellar. Staff realised what had happened almost immediately after the pair left the room and moved to stop them.

Ray was allegedly intercepted by employees as she ran towards a waiting car, though the man reached the vehicle first and drove away.

Wine expert Christian Borel, whose family has owned L’Auberge Provençale since 1981, said the woman appeared convincing.

“You could tell she was well travelled or knew enough to know the phraseology,” Mr Borel told the Mail. “She was guiding me away from certain areas, saying ‘we’re not as familiar with American wines so can you show me those?’