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TGIF!
As we close out the week, we have a few interesting stories for you to enjoy during your lunch break.
How Not to Get Away With Murder: Oliver Karafa and Lucy Li murdered a drug dealer who threatened their fraudulent schemes, left surveillance footage everywhere, and fled using obvious fake passports.
The Married Scientists Torn Apart by a Covid Bioweapon Theory: A virologist fled to America promoting Trump allies' COVID bioweapon theories, destroyed her career, and now hides from the desperate family she believes wants to trap her.
‘Sustainable’ Cashmere Won’t Save Mongolia’s Steppe: Mongolia's "certified sustainable" cashmere comes from cooperatives operating in devastated grasslands, with brands paying barely $3 more per pound while herders see nothing and desertification accelerates.
Grab your lunch. Let's go.
By Sarah Treleaven
Oliver Karafa and Lucy Li were ambitious twenty-somethings chasing wealth and social media stardom through shortcuts rather than substance. When Karafa's fraudulent business ventures collapsed and he owed drug dealer Tyler Pratt $500,000, the couple hatched an absurdly incompetent murder plot. In February 2021, they lured Pratt and his pregnant partner Jordyn Romano to an abandoned Hamilton warehouse under false pretenses. Karafa shot both—killing Pratt and critically wounding Romano, who survived despite a bullet through her heart. The pair's escape plan was equally bungled: they left surveillance footage everywhere, abandoned blood-soaked evidence in accessible trash cans, and fled to Europe using obviously fake passports. Police tracked them down within months. At trial, Li's defense argued she was "too dumb" to be complicit, while Karafa claimed self-defense against the imposing drug dealer he'd systematically defrauded. Neither story convinced the jury. Both received life sentences with no parole eligibility for 25 years, yet they're still pursuing appeals—apparently convinced they can finesse their way out of consequences just as they tried finessing their way to success.
By Katie J.M. Baker
In April 2020, virologist Li-Meng Yan fled Hong Kong for the United States, leaving behind her husband, Ranawaka Perera, and her parents without explanation. Allies of President Trump paid her ticket, placed her in safe houses, and positioned her as a media sensation promoting an explosive claim: that China deliberately engineered and released COVID-19 as a bioweapon. She became a Fox News fixture, appearing repeatedly on Tucker Carlson's show despite limited virology experience and publishing papers the scientific community swiftly demolished as flawed and unsupported.
Five years later, Yan remains in hiding, convinced her family has been coerced by the Chinese government to lure her back. Her husband moved to America searching desperately for her; her parents plead for contact. Yan refuses communication, believing reconnection means certain retaliation.
By Aïda Delpuech, Sara Manisera, and Daniela Sala
Mongolia produces 10,000 tons of raw cashmere annually, six times its 1993 output, fueling a global market projected to hit $4.24 billion by 2030. But this boom has devastated the country's grasslands. Roughly 22 million cashmere goats now graze pastures built to sustain far fewer animals, accelerating desertification across 76% of Mongolia's rangelands. Unlike sheep that nibble grass tops, goats tear vegetation from the roots, stripping soil of its regenerative capacity.
Enter the Sustainable Fibre Alliance, a London-based certifier promising "responsible" cashmere to brands like Burberry, Gucci and J.Crew. Yet New Lines' investigation reveals hollow promises: the SFA relies on self-assessments with minimal oversight, establishes no concrete metrics for stocking rates, and operates 90% of certified cooperatives in heavily degraded areas. Factory owners report European brands pay merely $3 more per pound for certified fiber, when they pay premiums at all. Herders see nothing extra.
Top Stories This Week
These were the most read stories from the Lunch Club this week:
That’s it for today.
Really hope you enjoyed the selection of stories today. I am always interested in hearing from you. If you have thoughts on how I can make this email even better, do not hesitate to reach out.
Brett
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