Lenny Dykstra's Drug, Auto Theft Felony Charges Laid Out
The criminal charges against Lenny Dykstra keep mounting. The former New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies star was charged Monday with grand theft auto and drug possession by prosecutors who claim he used phony information to lease a car from a Southern California dealership.
Dykstra, 48, was charged with 25 misdemeanor and felony counts of grand theft auto, attempted grand theft auto, identity theft and other crimes. He faces up to 12 years in state prison if convicted.
When Dykstra was arrested April 14 by Los Angeles Police Department detectives during a search warrant at his Encino home, officers allegedly found cocaine and Ecstasy along with Somatropin, a synthetic human growth hormone, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Dykstra, 48, and two co-defendants -- his accountant Robert Hymers, 27, and friend Christopher Gavanis, 30 -- were set to be arraigned Monday afternoon, Deputy District Attorny Alex Karkanen told the Times.
Dykstra is charged with five counts of attempted grand theft auto, eight counts of filing false financial statements, four counts of identity theft, three counts of grand theft auto and three counts of possession of a controlled substance. All are felonies.
In January, Dykstra, Hymers and Gavanis tried to lease high-end automobiles from several area dealerships by allegedly providing fraudulent information and claiming credit through a phony business, prosecutors claim.
At two dealerships, Dykstra and Hymers allegedly provided information from a man they claimed was a co-signer but who had not authorized his name to be used. The leases were not approved.
But all three men allegedly drove off with three cars at one company by providing fraudulent information, according to prosecutors.
In a separate federal case, the player former known as "Nails" was indicted in May on federal bankruptcy charges for allegedly removing, destroying and selling property that was part of a bankruptcy estate without the permission of the trustee.
Now Dykstra will have to face both federal and California state prosecutors. The federal charges fall under federal bankruptcy law. Lenny Dykstra's drug and auto theft felonies are state charges. Needless to say, Lenny Dysktra's indictments are adding up. You can bet his attorney bills are about to do the same.
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