Apr. 19, 2023 By Bill Parry
A Russian émigré from Brooklyn was sentenced Wednesday to 21 years in prison for the attempted murder of her Forest Hills beautician look-alike with a sedative-laced cheesecake in 2016, according to the Queens District Attorney’s Office.
Viktoria Nasyrova, 47, of Voorhies Avenue in Sheepshead Bay, was convicted in Queens Supreme Court in February by a jury of attempted murder in the second degree, attempted assault in the first degree, assault in the second degree, unlawful imprisonment in the first degree and petit larceny.
According to the evidence, on Aug. 28, 2016, Nasyrova visited the Forest Hills home of then-35-year-old Olga Tsvyk and brought her a cheesecake in a box. At that time, the victim and Nasyrova resembled one another — both had dark hair, the same complexion and other similar physical traits. Additionally, they were both Russian speakers.
(Courtesy of Queens DA’s office)
(Courtesy of Queens DA’s office)
Nasyrova ate two slices of cheesecake and then offered a slice to her victim. After eating the sedative-laced slice of cheesecake, Tsvyk felt sick and began to vomit. She eventually passed out, according to the charges. Her last memory was of seeing Nasyrova walking around her room. The following day, Tsvyk was discovered by one of her friends unconscious in her bed with pills scattered around her body — as if she had attempted to kill herself. She was taken to a hospital for treatment.
When Tsvyk returned home, she realized that her passport and employment authorization card were missing, along with around $4,000 in cash, a gold ring and other valuables. Law enforcement agents with the Department of Homeland Security discovered Phenazepam, a highly potent sedative, in cheesecake residue found on the dessert container. Phenazepam was developed by the Soviet Union in 1975 and is commonly used today in Russia and other European countries to treat anxiety and other psychiatric and neurological disorders.
The Drug Enforcement Administration tested the pills found on the floor near the victim and identified the same drug. When Nasyrova was taken into custody in Brooklyn on March 20, 2017, police found Tsuyk’s ring, passport, and employment card.
“A ruthless and calculating con artist is going to prison for a long time for trying to murder her way to personal profit and gain,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said. “Thankfully, the victim survived the attack on her life and we were able to deliver justice to her.”
Queens Supreme Court Justice Kenneth C. Holder sentenced Nasyrova to 21 years in prison to be followed by five years post-release supervision.