Steroids Found In AS I LAY DYING Frontman's Home

A two-minute video report from NBC 7 San Diego on yesterday's (Monday, September 16) court hearing to determine whether AS I LAY DYING frontman Tim Lambesis would stand trial on charges he tried to hire someone to kill his estranged wife can be seen below.

Lambesis will be arraigned on the charges October 22, which is when a date for his trial will be set.

According to NBC 7 San Diego, investigators found a lock box in Lambesis' Carlsbad, California home containing "a lot of different quantities" of male enhancement-type drugs, male libido-type drugs and estrogen blocking drugs — approximately 30 to 40 vials along with different types of pill packages. In addition, investigators found more than $12,000 in cash.

Lambesis' defense attorney, Tom Warwick, previously blamed Lambesis' steroid use for the alleged murder-for-hire plot. He also revealed that Lambesis was going through steroid withdrawal while in custody.

Lambesis' attorney said the "gym culture" led to "changes in [the singer's] physiological and mental status," with Tim's bodybuilding obsession causing him to go from 170 to 220 pounds after first taking supplements, then steroids. "[He] was not the same person. He was irritable and lost God."

Prosecutors allege Lambesis had twice told a man at a gym that he wanted his wife killed, then met with an undercover detective known as "Red", and gave the agent an envelope containing $1,000 in cash, photographs of his wife, and the security gate code to her house. He also allegedly told the agent the dates he would be with the couple's three adopted children, in order to give himself an alibi.

A number of witnesses testified for the prosecution during yesterday's hearing, including the undercover officer who posed as a hitman. The officer explained that Lambesis told him, "Just to clarify, just so you know, I do want her dead."

Investigators say the undercover cop operation was staged after Lambesis told a man at his gym at Pure Fitness back on April 23 that he wanted his wife killed. Lambesis was allegedly complaining that she was making life difficult for him, that it was hard for him to see his children and that it was impossible for them to complete their divorce.

"[Lambesis said that] he wasn't allowed to visit his kids, he wasn't allowed to see his kids, he wasn't allowed to take his kids out of the state to go on tour with him, and that angered him," the undercover officer testified. "And the fact that his wife was gonna get a large portion — up to 60 percent — of his income [as part of a divorce settlement]."