I found empty bags of cocaine in our daughter’s bed, says wife of Olympic champion Ryan Lochte as he reveals nightmare struggle with drugs
Ryan Lochte’s estranged wife has alleged she found empty bags of cocaine around their house and caught him inhaling nitrous oxide in front of their daughter, according to a recently filed court paper.
On August 21, Kayla Rae Reid filed a motion to amend her initial petition for divorce and made a series of shocking accusations against the six-time Olympic gold medalist in the proposed amended petition.
Reid, 34, announced in June that she had filed for divorce from swimmer Lochte, 41, in March after seven years of marriage.
At the time, the former Playboy playmate branded the divorce ‘painful’ and referenced ‘trials we didn’t choose or see coming’, while Lochte said he was ‘deeply grateful for the life we’ve built together’.
Neither revealed exactly what led to their marriage becoming ‘irretrievably broken’ but she has now made some explosive claims against Lochte, who is now dating kindergarten teacher Molly Gillihan, 37.
In the filing, Reid asked the court to award her sole custody of their three children: Caiden, 8, Liv, 6, and Georgia, 2.
Ryan Lochte’s wife, Kayla Reid, has made a series of shocking claims against the Olympian
The former swimmer pictured on a date with his new girlfriend Molly Gillihan back in July
She claims that sharing custody with Lochte ‘would be detrimental to the children because [Ryan] has a history of substance abuse and, upon information and belief, he is still abusing illegal controlled substances.’
On Tuesday, Daily Mail reported how Lochte claimed he was ’54 days sober’ after completing a spell in rehab in Florida.
Reid goes on to claim in the proposed amended petition that she discovered ‘mostly empty baggies of cocaine around the marital home as [Ryan] had consumed the majority of the contents before the baggies were discovered.’
She says in the court paper that she found the bags underneath the dining room table, in Liv’s bed and on Caiden’s bathroom counter. Reid also says she caught Lochte inhaling nitrous oxide in front of Liv while they were both in the garage.
It’s also claimed by Reid that Lochte failed a drug test ‘approximately two months ago’ and, when he asked for the children to stay at his house overnight, Lochte refused to submit to an in-home drug test so she refused his request.
Reid also alleges in the proposed amended petition that Lochte has a ‘tendency to doze off during the day’ and that she found him ‘passed out in the driver’s seat, with the car still on and the music blaring.’
The filing also claims she discovered Lochte had ‘driven the children to school while intoxicated’ and that he would drive around without them strapped into their car seats. Reid claims Lochte totaled a vehicle on August 7.
She also alleges Lochte ‘has fallen asleep while being the only adult watching the children’ and, while Reid was away working, he ‘unplugged all the security cameras so that she could no longer check on the children’ according to the court paper.
Reid claims she found bags of cocaine at Lochte’s house and caught him inhaling nitrous oxides in front of one of their daughters, Liv (right)
Kayla, seen in 2016 at Playboy Midsummer Night’s Dream party, was previously a Playmate
In a damning statement, the court paper adds: ‘[Ryan’s] recurring and repeated irresponsible behavior shows he is unfit to exercise shared parental responsibility, and it would [be] a detriment to the minor children to award the same.’
Daily Mail has reached out to Lochte’s attorneys for comment.
However, in a statement to Us, Lochte said: ‘As I acknowledged earlier this week, after my car accident in 2023, I fell into a cycle of depression that led to substance abuse.
‘I am not denying that I used drugs in my home, but I adamantly deny ever using drugs in front of or around my children, and I have never driven them while intoxicated.’
He continued: ‘At times, I would rest in my truck instead of going inside – not because I was impaired, but because the home environment had become overwhelming and very toxic, and I needed a moment to collect myself before walking in.
‘I have tried desperately to keep these divorce proceedings private and sealed, not to protect myself, but to protect my children from fabricated allegations that could hurt them. Unfortunately, despite that effort, my ex-wife chose to make this matter public, knowing I was already in intensive rehab.’
Specifically referring to Reid’s claim about him recently totaling a car, Lochte said: ‘It happened during a thunderstorm late in the evening as I was returning home from my rehab meeting, and I lost control of the vehicle.’
Lochte poses with his gold medal from Rio, where he medaled in the 4×200m freestyle relay
Reid has also demanded support and alimony in the filing and wants to continue to live apart from Lochte in the Florida home they once shared.
She also asked the court to grant permission for her and the children to move to California, citing how she cannot rely on Lochte due to his ‘multitude of substance abuse issues’ and the fact ‘his work takes him all over the country and world.’
Reid says she wants to move to California ‘ideally within the next six months to one year’ because her ‘support system’ is located there and, due to a lack of support in Florida, she is unable to work full time and cannot provide adequate financial care for the children.
On August 26, Lochte’s lawyer requested that Reid’s motion be sealed because the ‘scandalous accusations’ could damage his career. A judge has yet to rule on that motion.
Lochte revealed in recent days that he has been to rehab and admitted he had a long-term substance abuse problem.
The swimmer, who won six gold medals for the USA across four Olympics, previously went to rehab for six weeks in 2018 for alcohol addiction after an incident at a California hotel.
Lochte said he’s now been sober for over 50 days and added he was ‘so happy’ he admitted himself to the UF Health Florida Recovery Center in Gainesville.
Lochte, seen at the US Olympic Swim Trials in 2021, is a six-time Olympic gold medalist
Speaking on Instagram, the 41-year-old said: ‘I wanted to share some positive updates in my life and what’s going on. I am so happy right now, and the big reason is that I’m 54 days sober.’
Lochte said a near-death car crash in 2023 in Gainesville saw him fall ‘into a really dark place.’ He collided with a garbage truck on his way to collect his children from school.
While suffering with injuries that took months of recovery, Lochte also admitted he suffered from ‘depression, loneliness, and feeling like I was giving up’ in the aftermath and that ‘led me down a road of substance abuse.’
He added: ‘With everything going on in my life, I needed to make a change, a drastic change. I’m thinking clearly, I’m motivated, and I’m moving forward.’
