WDEL is reporting that prosecutors are not filing grand theft auto charges against former Phillies outfielder Lenny Dykstra. But they’re keeping him in jail while figuring out if he should face a later charge:
The investigation is still ongoing and it’s not known whether charges could be filed at a later date… Federal authorities are expected to charge (Dykstra) on a separate bankruptcy charge. He was recently charged with embezzling money from a bankruptcy estate. He faces up to five years in prison if convicted.
Two years ago, Kevin Coughlin of GQ magazine wrote a long piece about his stint working for Dykstra. This was right around the time when Dykstra’s reputation as some kind of accidental investing savant was beginning to unravel. Coughlin’s article includes a litany of accusations against Dykstra, primarily that he bounced checks, failed to pay vendors, and never returned borrowed money. This is how the piece ends:
“A photographer who did some work for the September and October issues (of Dykstra’s failed Player’s Club magazine) actually got Lenny to answer his phone at the end of January. He told Lenny that he wanted to be paid -- and that if he wasn’t, he’d sue."
“Get in line,” Lenny replied. “This conversation is over.”
So while Dykstra may have eluded theft charges, there’s a mountain of grievances against him piled so high that perhaps jail is the safest place on Earth for him right now.
