While his face may have been hidden from cameras, the Ukrainian orphan’s beau helped her flee from her adoptive parents’ home … after they feared he would hold her for “ransom” or “traffic” her.
Natalia Grace has a new man in her life.
The Ukrainian orphan initially made headlines when her first adoptive parents, Michael and Kristine Barnett, had her age legally changed to make her an adult — two years after they were told she was a 6-year-old girl. Claiming Natalia tried to kill them and their other children, the Barnetts then placed her in an apartment alone; the two were later arrested for neglect, but cleared of the charges, while a 2023 DNA test later determined Grace was actually a child at the time she was abandoned.
ID’s new The Curious Case of Natalia Grace series documents her life since, detailing why she fled the home of their second adoptive parents, Antwon and Cynthia Mans, to move in with Vince and Nicole DePaul … and the drama that followed her to their home. As part of the new four-part series, which TooFab has screened ahead of the episodes’ January 6 and 7 debuts, viewers are also introduced to Natalia’s boyfriend, a man in the UK named Neil.
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Viewers first heard about Neil in a distressed phone call the Mans made to producers, six months after they adopted Natalia.
“This girl is tweaking. She got this dude online. He turned her against us,” Antwon said in the phone call, as Cynthia claimed Natalia was ready to “pack up and leave and go to the UK” to be with him.”
“I was online, I met a guy. His name is Neil. He’s from the UK,” Natalia herself shared. “At first it was just a small message and then I grew feelings, he claimed he grew feelings and I just opened my heart. It felt really good.”
While Neil appeared in the documentary, he requested producers conceal his identity, so as not to subject himself and their relationship to public scrutiny.
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It was Neil who reached out to Nicole DePaul over social media, claiming Natalia was being “held hostage” by the Manses and had no “access to the outside world” and was being kept “like a prisoner.” He also reached out to producers, saying Natalia was in danger and needed help.
When producers “rushed” to Tennessee after the phone call from the Manses, however, everyone was acting as if nothing was wrong.
“This guy just completely flipped Natalia’s mind against her family. She was easily manipulated in that moment. He convinced Natalia that what he was saying was right and we were wrong and she was planning on going to the UK to be with this guys,” Cynthia told cameras.
Cynthia also said she thought the man would possible hold her for “ransom” or traffic her, causing them to cut her off from the internet.
“I thought I was in love, but it wasn’t right,” Natalia then said. “I wasn’t thinking clearly and there is something I want every girl my age and younger to know … I know that, especially at this age, you want to meet somebody, you want to be with somebody, but don’t try and do stuff on your own, because it’s not safe. I literally almost left home because I thought I was in love. I almost left my family.”
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But Natalia and Neil kept talking, hiding their messages to one another by using Duolingo, which Natalia still had access to. She allegedly told Neil that she was living in “pain constantly” and was even having “problems with her period” while living with the Manses, claiming they had also “robbed” her to buy a home.
Natalia, Neil and the DePauls then worked out a plan to get Natalia out from the Manses home, with Nicole picking her up from church after Natalia excused herself to use the restroom. One of Natalia’s first calls after getting into Nicole’s vehicle was to Neil.
While living with the DePauls, Nicole said she could overhear moaning “like a porno” coming from Natalia’s room — as well as her saying Neil’s name. “I could only deduce they were having video sex, phone sex,” said Nicole, who soundproofed Natalia’s room while adding that there’s nothing wrong with two consenting adults getting frisky over the phone. “I don’t care, I was like, ‘You go girl!'” exclaimed Nicole.
Nicole later claimed the Manses possibly had sexual comments and possibly photos of Natalia and Neil from their correspondences, which she believed was being used to blackmail Natalia into not speaking out about them. Natalia, meanwhile, admitted she worried the Manses would “slander” Neil and their relationship.
At one point, Natalia considered moving back in with the Manses — but Nicole claimed Neil was the one who talked her out of it, telling her she needed to stay with the DePauls. Eventually, Natalia cut ties with the Manses completely.
One of her first acts of independence from them was a trip to the UK, where she visited Neil in person. Their visit was not shown on the special, though she was seen getting a mini-makeover before the trip — before saying she was a “much happier person” after going abroad. She also said she planned to travel more in the future, after taking her very first flight ever to visit him.
“He legit cares,” she added of Neil toward the end of the series.
The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: The Final Chapter airs in four parts — with two episodes of Monday, January 6 and Tuesday, January 7 on ID and streaming on Max.
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