An Eyelash Technician Accepted a Last-Minute Appointment. She Woke Up Days Later Poisoned by Cheesecake (Exclusive)

Eyelash technician Olga Tsvyk accepted a last-minute request to do a client’s eyelashes, but what happened next would haunt her for years. 

The latest episode in the second season of ID’s The Curious Case Of… series is called “The Killer Cheesecake.” It tells the story of Tsvyk, who said she was poisoned by a client who brought her a slice of tainted cheesecake when she arrived for her cosmetic treatment. 

The client, Viktoria Nasyrova, turned out to be an alleged Russian fugitive, and she wanted to assume “look-alike” Tsvyk’s identity, Tsvyk claimed. Nasyrova — who was convicted 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 in 2023 — has denied poisoning Tsvyk.

The episode, which premieres Jan. 19, features tons of twists and turns as victims and the legal team recall the 2016 case.

Tsvyk, who was 35 at the time, was working as an eyelash esthetician when she met Nasyrova through one of her clients. Tsvyk received an urgent request from Nasyrova to perform a treatment on her eyelashes. Nasyrova claimed she was about to go on vacation. 

Tsvyk, who was born in Ukraine and living in Queens, N.Y., arranged to have Nasyrova meet her at home on Aug. 28, 2016. Nasyrova insisted on bringing a cheesecake “from some bakery in Brooklyn” to the appointment,” Tsyvk claimed.

Tsvyk says in the documentary that Nasyrova brought several pieces of cheesecake to her home. She proceeded to eat two pieces and left one for Tsvyk, who ate the slice. “It wasn’t so delicious as she advertised before,” she recalls.

Tsvyk immediately felt nauseous and vomited on the floor after eating the dessert. Her last memory was of Nasyrova bringing her paper towels to clean up the mess. 

Tsvyk was eventually found by salon owner Stella Stepanyan, who grew concerned and went to Tsvyk’s home after she didn’t show up for work, as Stepanyan explains in a clip exclusively shared with PEOPLE. She found her employee lying in a bed in lingerie and surrounded by pills. 

At the hospital, Tsvyk tested negative for narcotics. She was in a stupor for about three days and needed assistance upon returning home.

Tsvyk later reported to the police that thousands of dollars, her purse, clothes, passport and work visa were missing, and that’s when the New York Police Department got involved. (Other valuables, including a gold ring, were also missing, officials said.)

Former detective Kevin Rodgers remembers receiving two calls about an alleged grand larceny case on Sept. 2, 2016. As he uncovered the details — which, he claimed, included Tsvyk’s room being 107 degrees when she was found and the remote control to adjust the heater being tossed under her bed — he grew increasingly concerned. 

“Someone intentionally turned the heat up all the way in late August in New York and didn’t want somebody to turn it off,” Rodgers speculates in the episode. 

Shortly after, a second alleged victim of Nasyrova came forward. Queens resident Ruben Buruhkov claimed he met Nasyrova, who was allegedly going by the alias Anna, on a Russian dating website. She invited him to her home for dinner, and he recalls feeling that “something was wrong” after a few bites of his meal.

He alleged that Nasyrova proceeded to steal from him and drop him off at the store he owns, with Nasyrova suggesting to his colleagues that he must have drunk too much or used drugs that evening, and he reported the allegations to police. (He later testified about these allegations in Nasyrova’s trial over the cheesecake incident.)

After Rodgers received the second report, he discovered an arrest warrant for Nasyrova in Russia, where she was wanted for the alleged murder of a woman.

The story continues with an account from private investigator Herman Weisberg, who was hired by Nadia Ford, the daughter of Nasyrova’s late neighbor in Russia. (Ford’s mother was the woman who was murdered under suspicious circumstances.) Legal analyst Beth Karas also offers commentary.

Rodgers and Tsvyk located the cheesecake container that Nasyrova had brought to Tsvyk’s home and testing revealed traces of phenazepam. The sedative is not typically tested for as it cannot be legally obtained in the United States.

Phenazepam can be fatal if one’s body temperature goes above a certain temperature, which elevated the potential crime from grand larceny to attempted murder. 

Nasyrova was arrested on March 20, 2017 and eventually sentenced to 21 years in prison for poisoning Tsvyk and stealing her identification. Upon her eventual release, she will be subject to five years of supervision. 

“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. Thankfully, the victim survived the attack on her life, and we were able to deliver justice to her,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a statement at the time. 

Prosecuting Attorney Dino Litourgis says in the documentary that he hopes Nasyrova will be extradited to Russia to “face justice in that system” following her release. 

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Karas reached out to Nasyrova for comment, but she declined to do an interview without payment.

She has, however, done interviews with the New York Post, and in 2023, she told the outlet she has been selling 3D art in prison and continued to insist on her innocence. 

The Curious Case Of… The Killer Cheesecake? premieres Jan. 19 at 10 p.m. ET, on ID, with new episodes airing weekly. Episodes will be available to stream on HBO Max.