A dim-witted duo stole a Lexus belonging to a Manhattan cookbook author in a half-baked scheme to sell it back to him -- but the car got towed before they could seal the dopey deal, authorities said yesterday.

Jesus Muņoz, 38, and Joseph Cartagena, 21, stole the 2008 beige and gold Lexus on West 81st Street near the Museum of Natural History at around noon on Dec. 3 after they found the keys inside the car, according to a criminal complaint.

The Lexus' owner, Richard Grausman, 71, reported the car stolen that same day, the complaint said.

On Dec. 6, a man phoned Grausman and claimed that his friend had sold him the Lexus for $3,000. He said he would sell Grausman back the car for the same price, the complaint says.

A half-hour later, the same man allegedly called Grausman back and promised to phone him the next morning to arrange a time and place to meet.

When the man called the next day, he delivered some bad news -- the Lexus had been towed. But, bizarrely, he wanted to meet with Grausman at his Upper West Side address to return the car's keys and documents.

Detectives were already waiting for the boneheaded thieves when they showed up with Grausman's car keys and Lexus invoice, the complaint states. Police recovered a plastic tube containing cocaine residue from Muņoz's jacket pocket.

Cartagena allegedly admitted to police that he was involved in the heist, but played down his role.

"I said I got a conscience, why are you stealing these cars at Christmas? I talked my boy into calling the owner to give them the car back. I didn't know he was going for money," Cartagena told investigators, according to court papers.

Cartagena put the onus squarely on his accomplice.

"I asked him where he got the ride," Cartagena allegedly told cops. "My boy says, 'I stole it.' I said, 'But you got the keys.' He said, 'Yeah, it was in the car. I just rolled it off.' "

Both suspects were charged with criminal possession of stolen property and coercion. Muņoz was additionally charged with drug possession.

Cartagena was released on bail following his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court. Muņoz was being held in lieu of $12,500 bail.

Grausman is a respected culinary educator who has been cited by Bon Appetit magazine. He is the president of the Careers Through Culinary Arts Program and wrote, "At Home with the French Classics."



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"I said I got a conscience, why are you stealing these cars at Christmas?"