From tales of free parts and helpful staff, to the sheer joy of simply browsing Los Angeles Dismantler’s inventory, there’s no shortage of love for this salvage yard institution and its outgoing owner, Sara “Porsche” Dakarmen—so much love, in fact, that many in the community have been left surprised by its recent decision to close and liquidate its massive inventory.
That also piqued our curiosity, so we decided to take a look beneath the surface. The salvage yard has an imperfect online reputation, but its preponderance of five-star reviews (repeated on Google) makes it look every bit like the community staple many tout it to be. But deep in the one-star column, we found cryptic references to company co-founder and now-previous co-owner, Troud Stroud Dakarmenjian, AKA Todd Dakarmen, and the possibility that some of the dealership’s hard-to-find Porsche parts had less-than-legal origins. But reliable information about Dakarmenjian, now deceased, or any evidence of impropriety is surprisingly difficult to come by.
We know some things for certain: Dakarmenjian was heavily engaged with the Porsche DIY community. To many, both he and his wife, Sara—LA Dismantler’s co-founder and current owner/operator—are household names. Or “were,” at least. Todd Dakarmenjian died in police custody in 2017. What led to Troud’s sudden passing and what does that have to do with LA Dismantler’s sale? For that, we need to go back much further.
Dakarmenjian was arrested at least a half-dozen times* in Los Angeles County alone between 1990 and 2016; the bulk of those came after he opened LA Dismantler in 1998, including an arrest in 2007 for (among other things) illegally operating a chop shop and another in 2008 for VIN fraud. Both were ultimately dismissed, the former for lack of probable cause; the latter “in the furtherance of justice,” which appears to be legal speak for “de-cluttering the legal system to focus on the murderers.”
Things really got messy in 2011, when he was arrested on a host of gun charges, including unlawfully possessing or transporting a machine gun. He was ultimately acquitted on that count, but found guilty of three other felony gun charges. Remember, this all happened in California, which has aggressive firearms regulations. He was hit with fines, jail time and, critically, three years of probation. That sentencing hearing was held in January 2016.
Barely months later, Dakarmenjian was back in court. Already on probation for the previous felonies, he was facing new charges, including VIN tampering, receiving stolen property, and operating a chop shop. We haven’t seen the supporting materials, but based on charging and sentencing summaries available in public records, it appears Dakarmenjian took a deal that would limit his additional punishment to extended probation in exchange for pleading no contest on those three charges. Whether there were any additional provisions of that agreement (such as cooperation) is unclear from the available documentation. This left Dakarmenjian on probation for convictions in two separate felony cases.
Legally, a “no contest” plea is not an admission of guilt; it’s simply a refusal to address the charge in question. Without supporting evidence, there’s nothing in the case summary that connects his charges with the operations at LA Dismantler. Still, Dakarmenjian’s record paints the picture of a man who, at minimum, was walking a fine line.
It all came to a head on May 18, 2017, when officers conducted simultaneous “probation compliance checks” at Dakarmenjian’s home—which he shared with his wife and four children—and the dealership. At his home, they found numerous firearms, some of them unsecured, which prompted a call to the Department of Children and Family Services.
He and his wife were at home when the warrant was served. Troud was booked for violating his probation, in addition to new charges brought based on evidence from the raids. Sara was also arrested on suspicion of child endangerment due to the unsecured firearms. That charge was eventually dismissed. In fact, neither would end up standing trial.
As for what the police found at LA Dismantler: “At Dakarmenjian’s Porsche dismantling business in Sun Valley, police recovered additional firearms and bulk ammunition in his private office. In the yard of the business, components to several active outstanding stolen Porsche vehicles were recovered.”
Yet again, Dakarmenjian would face charges of running a chop shop. But on the first day in holding, Troud hanged himself with his own shirt. He was found unresponsive by guards and transported to a hospital, where he later died; the investigation (linked above) found no signs of foul play and Dakarmenjian offered no hint that he was suicidal. Perhaps out of sympathy, the city dropped its charges against Sara. With Troud’s death, the responsibility of running LA Dismantler fell to her.
But while the 2017 incident aroused suspicions within the Porsche community, Dakarmenjian’s death marked the end of any public accusations against LA Dismantler and we cannot find any evidence to suggest that Sara is involved in anything shady.
If the story ended there, it would be dramatic enough, but after Dakarmenjian’s death, his family learned that he’d deeded several properties owned by the family trust—including the LA Dismantler site—to himself. When the forgeries were discovered, the family sued Sara (who inherited Troud’s holdings) for fraudulently appropriating the property. A bench trial was convened in late 2019; the judge eventually ruled in the family’s favor in April 2020.
Earlier this year, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office served notice that Sara would have to liquidate holdings in order to pay relief to the family, along with a nearly $1.6 million judgment awarded in a separate case dating to 2017, in which Troud (and by virtue of them being married, Sara) was found to have used stolen funds to purchase several high-end vehicles, including a Porsche Carrera GT. Right around this time, Sara began soliciting applicants for a new business partner (sic):
“Are you a Porsche collectors or automotive enthusiasts passionate about Porsche and have aspirations of being in your own, or augmenting your existing business? Seeking a dynamic and capable partner to join our successful Porsche parts business, a once in a lifetime opportunity.”
That call was repeated several times on social media throughout September and October. Just before Thanksgiving, it was replaced with the news that the shop was liquidating “after seven years of perseverance following the sudden loss” of Dakarmenjian.
So far, LA Dismantler hasn’t responded to specific inquiries about the shutdown, inviting the community to draw its own conclusions. We won’t offer any of our own; we know only what we’ve shared with you. We’ve reached out to Sara to ask for her take on the impending closure, but as of publication time we have not received a reply. We’d love to hear about your experiences with LA Dismantler—good or bad—so please reach out if you have stories to share.
*All cases referenced in this post are public record and were obtained by The Drive via Los Angeles County’s online servicing system.