Investment Advisor Accused of Cheating Las Vegas Casinos

A Camarillo investment advisor who owes as much as $47 million to creditors is in jail and awaiting extradition to Nevada, accused of writing $230,000 in bad checks at Las Vegas casinos.

Donald D. Lukens, 50, was arrested Monday following an unrelated hearing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Santa Barbara, authorities said. Lukens and his wife, Denise, filed for bankruptcy protection last month, listing more than 500 creditors and debts of nearly $47 million.

Creditors include the Internal Revenue Service, several banks and credit card companies and a host of professional athletes, including NFL stars Simeon Rice and Shannon Sharpe and NBA veterans Bryon Russell and Keith Van Horn.

The hearing, held to allow creditors and a trustee assigned to the case to further examine Lukens’ debts and assets, was attended by dozens of local investors seeking repayment of money funneled through Lukens’ company, Community Group Funding, to fund residential and commercial projects.

“A lot of people are out a lot of money,” said 76-year-old Camarillo resident Joe Mastro, who along with his wife, Bonnie, started investing with Lukens in 1992. They maintain they are owed more than $200,000.

“We’re not as bad off as some,” he said. “I feel sorry for a lot of these old people, I really do.”

Lukens’ attorney, Jay Michaelson, said it’s still uncertain exactly how much is owed and how much Lukens will be able to repay, noting that his client lists assets of $975,333.

Moreover, Michaelson said many of the claims against Lukens are in dispute.

The IRS, for example, is seeking $2.2 million in back taxes. Michaelson said that assessment stems from Lukens’ failure to file tax returns from the late 1990s and that once he does, he will owe little or no tax.

Similarly, Michaelson said he believes many of the claims filed by investors are also overblown.

“I would probably call it a gross exaggeration,” Michaelson said of the $47-million figure creditors say they are owed.

Another hearing has been scheduled for June 19 to continue to sort through the financial tangle.

In the meantime, Lukens is awaiting extradition to Nevada, where he is suspected of writing five bad checks in 1999, said Clark County Deputy Dist. Atty. Dan Ahlstrom.

Ahlstrom said Lukens has repeatedly ignored notices that he was wanted in Nevada on those charges. He was arrested by federal marshals after Monday’s hearing and booked into Santa Barbara County Jail.

“We try desperately to resolve these matters before they get to this point,” Ahlstrom said.

If Lukens doesn’t fight extradition, Ahlstrom said he could be transferred to Clark County in about a week.