In the trailer, we see people who knew Melngailis detailing her story, from her failure to pay employees to her questionable relationship with a guy who claimed he could make her dog immortal. (No, we're not making this up.)
In one clip, Jim Switzer, the former operations manager of Pure Food and Wine, said, "There were tons of conspiracy theories about why she married him. Was there some sort of blackmail involved?" Former manager Bonnie Crocker also chimed in, "It was just all very mysterious."
Warning—a few spoilers about the scandal ahead: After Melngailis met her ex-husband, Anthony Strangis, on Twitter in 2011, he conned the restauranteur into thinking that he could help her reach her goals. But in exchange for these outlandish promises, she had to follow all of his requests. As a result, they wound up stealing over $2 million from the restaurant while several employees and suppliers went unpaid. And after being on the run for almost a year, the couple were finally caught by law enforcement after Strangis ordered from Domino’s under his real name.
Perhaps you're already thinking that this doc sounds way too bizarre to be true (TBH, same). But one thing's for sure. Fans of Tinder Swindler and Inventing Anna may have just found their newest obsession.
Bad Vegan: Fame. Fraud. Fugitives is now available to stream on Netflix.
