A “ruthless and calculating” woman has been jailed for 21 years for trying to kill her friend in the US with poisoned cheesecake to steal her identity.
Victoria Nasirova convicted of attempted murder By a New York jury in February.
The 47-year-old brought the sedative dessert to Olga Tsvyk’s New York City home during an August 2016 lash appointment.
Nasyrova is said to have eaten two slices of the cheesecake before offering the third to the 35-year-old beautician.
Ms Tsyvk, who survived, was found unconscious.
Prosecutors said Nasyrova sprinkled the pills around Ms Tsyvk to make it look like a suicide before taking her passport and valuables.
It was later discovered that the cheesecake contained a powerful sedative called Benazepam.
Nasyrova was arrested after her DNA was found on the box.
The trial was told the two women looked alike, with dark hair and a similar complexion.
Nasyrova was sentenced on Wednesday.
“A ruthless, calculating con artist will go to prison for a long time for attempting to gain personal gain through murder,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a statement.
Nasyrova’s lawyer, Jose Nieves, said they will appeal the conviction and sentence.
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Nasyrova was wanted by Interpol for claiming she killed her neighbor in Russia
Prior to her arrest, Nasirova was also on the Interpol red list after she was accused of fleeing Russia in 2014 for killing a neighbor.
She was allegedly caught on CCTV with the woman’s body on the passenger seat of her car.
Nasyrova denied the allegations in a 2017 interview with CBS, claiming the photos were fake and she was framed by police.
She also told the New York Post that she had been a sadist in New York — and suggested that the cheesecake incident was food poisoning.