Shocking CCTV footage has revealed the moment a Michelin-star restaurant boss spiked a woman's spicy margarita with a dangerous substance concealed within a Madagascan vanilla extract bottle. Vikas Nath, aged 63, admitted using a straw to administer gamma-butyrolactone (GBL) into the beverage while seated in the exclusive rooftop garden bar of Annabel's members club in Mayfair on January 15, 2024, as detailed during a trial at Southwark Crown Court.
Brazen Act in Exclusive Surroundings
The restaurateur, who oversees a portfolio of top-tier establishments across the UK and Spain including two with Michelin stars, insists his actions were motivated by a desire to make the woman "less anxious" rather than as part of any plan to engage in sexual activity, according to prosecutors. The CCTV footage, obtained by the Daily Mail, shows Nath tampering with the drink mere yards away from colleagues carrying beverages and customers enjoying their evening at the prestigious £3,750-per-year club located in Berkeley Square.
Relaxing on a plush cushioned sofa that dominates the top floor of Annabel's, the suit-clad businessman can be seen holding a phone in his left hand and a straw in his right. He initially dips the straw into what is believed to be the victim's drink, although at this stage he has not yet added any of the spiking substance. Nath takes a sip from the straw before placing it back on one of the lounge's circular tables.
Covert Movements and Suspicious Behaviour
Seconds later, the reclining restaurant boss uses his right hand to reach into his trouser pocket, appearing to retrieve a small bottle filled with a substance. Just one table away from another customer seated on a barrel-shaped chair, Nath shuffles awkwardly and puts down his phone to free his left hand. He grabs the straw again, seemingly dipping it into the bottle while attempting to conceal the action as a diner walks past.
After returning the straw to the table and glancing at his phone momentarily, Nath waits for the bustling crowd to settle. The moment a roaming customer moves out of sight, he dips the straw into the target drink, gives it a stir, and tastes the residue. He previously informed jurors that he had consumed the substance himself on several occasions prior to that evening, as it was known to heighten the effects of alcohol. The court also heard that Nath had taken a "swig" of the substance before entering Annabel's.
The boss then casually scrolls on his phone and reclines in his seat before appearing to dip the straw back into the bottle and into the spicy margarita twice more. Nath seems to return the bottle to his pocket before laying back on the sofa again.
Intervention and Legal Proceedings
Fortunately, staff managed to switch the drugged drink for a fresh one before the woman consumed it, and Nath disposed of the GBL bottle by throwing it into a toilet cistern as police were en route, the court was told. Giving evidence on Wednesday, Nath, who serves as a director of Termdeal Ltd, the company that owns the high-end Indian restaurant Benares in Mayfair, told jurors through tears: "What I did was wrong and I regret it very deeply." However, he denied any intention to "stupefy and overpower" the woman.
The defendant stated that he had mixed the substance, which he believed to be cleaning fluid, with tequila and placed it in the woman's drink to "calm" her. He described the woman as "erratic" and claimed his goal was for her to be "less anxious and for her to calm down a little bit." When questioned by his barrister, Eleanor Laws KC, about whether he intended to have sex with her, Nath replied: "I wasn't thinking about that."
Background and Relationship Details
The woman and Nath had met on several occasions prior to the January 2024 incident, often for lunch at venues such as the Beaverbrook Town House five-star hotel and the Michelin-starred restaurant Benares. Jurors heard that the defendant had originally purchased the substance around 2016 as a cleaning fluid for his BMW i8 car, and a friend had informed him it could also be consumed with alcohol as a "relaxant." GBL is known to have been used as a fluid for cleaning alloy wheels.
Police later conducted a search of Nath's home and discovered two bottles of the substance under his sink. He told officers that he was unaware of the drug's identity, the court heard. In response to inquiries about how he met the woman, Nath explained: "I met her very briefly by the side door of the building in late October or early November 2023. She said that we could meet sometime over lunch or coffee."
Nath, a resident of Knightsbridge in west London, stated that during their outings, he expressed interest in starting a relationship with her, to which she responded with a smile. When asked about messages he had sent to a friend regarding the complainant, Nath admitted: "They were very crude messages."
Events Leading to the Incident
On January 11, just four days before the spiking incident, the pair visited the Cirque Le Soir nightclub in the West End. Nath messaged the woman the following day, expressing concern that her drink might be spiked. He told the court: "We were in a strange place...She was going away to the bathroom sometimes and leaving her drinks and personal belongings on the table. She was behaving very erratically, she was very hyper. Someone who has drunk that much I would expect that."
He claimed the woman had asked to return to his flat, but he declined, adding: "I didn't want my adult son seeing me with a woman." The restaurant boss acknowledged: "I thought I agreed that it might lead to a sexual liaison." Nath said that on the night of the spiking, he intended to discuss "taking [the relationship] to the next level" with the woman.
When asked by Ms Laws whether he considered the relationship purely platonic while en route to Annabel's, Nath replied: "No." He explained that they had exchanged numerous messages, some of which were flirtatious, and added that they had been "cuddling and kissing."
Ongoing Trial and Charges
Jurors previously heard that staff at Annabel's on January 15 observed Nath dipping a straw into a small Madagascan vanilla extract bottle retrieved from his pocket, sucking up liquid, and transferring it to the margarita. Nath denies the charges of attempting to administer a substance with intent and possession of a Class B drug. The trial continues as further evidence is presented.
