NHL veteran has been linked to major cocaine bust.

A veteran of the National Hockey League has his name all over the news in his home country and unfortunately for him it is for all of the wrong reasons.

According to a report from MTV, not the MTV that most of our readers will be familiar with in in North American but rather a Finnish news outlet, is reporting that Philadelphia Flyers forward Jori Lehtera has been linked to a major drug bust in his home country of Finland. The report details that there are a whopping 23 suspects as part of this major drug bust from the Finnish police and that one of those 23 suspects is the Flyers forward himself.

It's very important to note here that Lehtera himself has caught wind of these accusations and he has categorically denied having any involvement in this situation but Finnish police appear to feel rather differently about the situation. Finnish law enforcement states that the drugs where being distributed in the Tampere and Pirkanmaa regions of Finland and were being distributed through the use of restaurants and other locations as well.

Unsurprisingly Lehtera has come out and stated that he is unable to give much of a comment due to the ongoing nature of the police investigation into this matter. That being said though he has released a very brief statement following the 

“I just want to say you guys are gonna see I haven’t done anything wrong,” said Lehtera as per Flyers insider Dave Isaac.

Although Lehtera denies any involvement it is important to note that this is not a simple matter that is before him, although we have been given no indication of how much jail time Lehtera could be facing here it seems likely that it is significant. According to MTV's report law enforcement has saved a stunning 2 kilograms of cocaine as part of this police investigation and additionally that officers have seized well over $750,000 in gold, jewelry, and other property. Additionally the cocaine itself is believed to have a street value of nearly $200 per gram, bringing the value of the cocaine that was seized in this sting to upwards of $400,000.

The Philadelphia Flyers themselves are well aware of the fact that Lehtera has been named as a suspect in this investigation and reports suggest that they are now in regular contact with the National Hockey League itself regarding this matter. Obviously this is an extremely serious situation and could potentially impact the Flyers season in a very significant way if Lehtera were to forced to testify or if law enforcement were to move forward with his arrest in this matter. 

As a result general manager Ron Hextall has issued a public statement regarding the situation but as you would expect in such a matter he said very little in that statement.

“We have spoken with Jori Lehtera and the league office regarding the reports out of Finland, and will reserve any further comment on the matter at this time.”

The National Hockey League itself has now launched an investigation into Lehtera's involvement in this situation and how the Flyers proceed now will likely depend on the outcome of that process.

[pub]