CLARKE COUNTY, Va. — A case involving the theft of rare French wine from a local restaurant and inn will move forward after a judge ruled Wednesday that the matter can be transferred to circuit court.
Clarke County Judge Amy B. Tisinger said prosecutors presented “absolutely sufficient probable cause” to continue the case against Natali Ray, who is accused of attempting to steal four bottles of rare wine valued at more than $40,000 from L’Auberge Provencale, a fine-dining establishment in White Post.
Tisinger made the ruling at the conclusion of a preliminary hearing in Clarke County General District Court, clearing the way for three felony charges — grand larceny, conspiracy to commit grand larceny and defrauding a hotel — to be presented to a grand jury.
Ray, a British citizen, was scheduled to appear in person Wednesday but instead appeared by video from the Northwestern Regional Adult Detention Center due to what court officials described as a jail transport error.
Authorities allege Ray and a male accomplice stole four bottles of wine produced by Domaine de la Romanée-Conti from L’Auberge on Nov. 19. Two bottles were later recovered. L’Auberge co-owner and sommelier Christian Borel testified that the remaining two bottles are valued at between $30,000 and $40,000.
Although prosecutors indicated they could call up to six witnesses, Clarke County Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Suni Mackall called only Borel to testify.
Borel had previously described the incident in a video message and an interview with The Winchester Star, but provided additional details under oath.
He testified that Ray and a man requested a tour of the restaurant’s wine cellar after inquiring about hosting a corporate event.
“Not the weirdest sort of thing to hear,” Borel said of the request. “We have a wonderful wine cellar that’s very well regarded. It’s got about 5,500 bottles of wine.”
Borel described Ray as “very bubbly and very happy,” adding that she quickly took control of the conversation. The man, he said, “spoke very, very little.”
Ray told Borel she was arranging a corporate dinner for her boss at a “Canadian science company” expanding into the Mid-Atlantic region.
Borel said he agreed to the tour in part because business can be slow after the holidays. “These corporate events can be very lucrative,” he testified.
He led the pair down narrow steps into the basement cellar, where the tight aisles required them to walk in close quarters.
At one point, Borel said he showed Ray a special bottle featuring a quote from former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in an effort to establish common ground.
“She kept talking very, very rapidly the entire time… lots of information, lots of questions about everything that she was seeing,” he said.
During that time, Borel said he briefly lost sight of the man and heard what sounded like the “clink” of a bottle but dismissed it.
“It’s not unusual,” he said, explaining that he often nicked bottles because of the cellar’s narrow layout.
Moments later, the man reappeared.
“At that point,” Borel said, “everything really changed.”
He testified that Ray abruptly ended the tour upon the man’s return, shifting from “super engaging” to hurried and frenetic.
“It was almost a little rude, because we were sort of right in the middle of a conversation.”
As the pair headed upstairs, Borel said he became uneasy and decided to quickly check the cellar’s most expensive section before they left.
He testified that he knew exactly where the high-end bottles were stored because he had personally placed each one. When he knelt to inspect the section housing the Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, he saw two screw-cap bottles with fake labels placed on top.
When he realized what had happened, Borel said he experienced “about five seconds of pure disbelief,” then ran upstairs and alerted an employee.
“I said, ‘Stop them. Stop them. They’re stealing wine,’” he testified.
Borel ran through the bar and toward the driveway, expecting to see a vehicle speeding away. Instead, he saw Ray and the man walking down the long driveway toward U.S. 340.
He described chasing them while shouting, “No, no, no, absolutely not!”
Borel testified that the pair began running toward a vehicle parked on an overgrown access road once they realized they were being pursued. The vehicle began accelerating as he approached.
“I was trying to reach over to put [the car] in park. He kind of shoved me away,” Borel testified. When the vehicle began moving, he let go and stepped aside.
The man drove away. A patron attempted to follow in another vehicle but was rear-ended during the pursuit. No injuries were reported.
Borel said he photographed the vehicle’s license plate. He previously told The Winchester Star that investigators traced the vehicle to a rental company in New Jersey.
He then turned his attention to Ray, who had not made it into the vehicle.
Borel testified that she appeared to have a look of “absolute disbelief” at being left behind.
He said Ray offered several explanations for her involvement, including that she had been coerced and was being held against her will.
Two bottles were later recovered in the grass. Borel confirmed that the other two Domaine de la Romanée-Conti bottles were taken.
In December, the Clarke County Sheriff’s Office identified the alleged accomplice as Nikola Krndija, a Serbian national believed to have left the United States the day after the incident on a flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport to Vienna, Austria.
Clarke County Sheriff Travis Sumption declined Wednesday to provide an update on the investigation into Krndija. He previously told The Winchester Star that investigators were “working hard on trying to locate [Krndija] and see if we can bring him to justice.”
Ray is being held without bond at the Northwestern Regional Adult Detention Center. If indicted by a grand jury, she is scheduled to appear in Clarke County Circuit Court on April 20.
