A long-anticipated federal indictment against Applied Pharmacy Services (APS) on charges of conspiracy and distribution of anabolic steroids was unsealed by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Alabama in Mobile. The massive 198-count federal indictment identifies twelve individuals as part of the Applied Pharmacy Services steroid distribution network including pharmacy owners and pharmacists, and doctors and businessmen who profited from customer referrals to APS. Six co-conspirators in the APS steroid distribution network were previously indicted in separate cases (”Pharmacy owners, others are charged in steroids case,” January 22).
“Each of the pharmacy owners and pharmacists named in the indictment are charged with prescribing and selling veterinary steroids, approved for cattle and livestock only, to humans,” U.S. Attorney Deborah Rhodes said in a prepared statement. “We will continue to work with the DEA, the IRS Criminal Investigation Division and the Alabama Board of Pharmacy to ensure that medical professionals who abuse their position of trust are held accountable.”
The United States Attorney’s Office in Mobile showed a considerable penchant for political grandstanding against steroids in the APS indictment. U.S. Attorney Deborah Rhodes and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Donna Dobbins and Maria Murphy felt compelled to use inflammatory language in the indictment that was seemingly more reflective of personal anti-steroid bias than steroid law.
The prosecutors did not miss an opportunity to inject the label of “steroid user” to indicted individuals which served no other purpose than cheap attempts to further demonize the invididual; rather than restrict language such that it conformed to legally-defined crimes, prosecutors repeatedly identified defendants as “steroid dealers.” Read more
MESO-Rx learned in January 2008 that the federal government is mounting a case against Applied Pharmacy Services (APS) on charges of conspiracy to illegally distribute anabolic steroids and human growth hormone. The alleged conspiracy includes APS’ major shareholders Samuel Kelley and Jason Kelley; Brett Branch, an APS sales rep and owner of Infinite Health in Eaton, Colorado; and Colorado physicians Kenneth Olds, M.D., Kelly Tucker, M.D. and Scott Corliss, M.D. Scott Corliss is the only co-conspirator who has been indicted to date.
According to the Mobile Press-Register, physician Scott Corliss pleaded guilty for his role in the steroid scandal and agreed to cooperate with federal investigators in its case against Applied Pharmacy Services. Corliss was scheduled to be sentenced last week, but Assistant U.S Attorney Donna Dobbins from the U.S. Attorney’s office in Mobile requested a postponement to pursue additional indictments in the APS investigation.
Chief U.S. District Judge Ginny Granade agreed Thursday to postpone the sentencing hearing for a Colorado doctor who pleaded guilty to a steroids-related charge earlier this year. As part of his plea bargain, Dr. Scott A. Corliss agreed to assist the investigation…
“This multi-jurisdictional investigation is ongoing and the United States expects that charges will be filed against other co-conspirators in the near future,” the motion stated.
APS was raided in December 2006 under the direction of the Office of Albany District Attorney David Soares. However, the federal investigation and alleged conspiracy charges are separate from the New York state investigation.
It appears that the federal government is mounting a case against Applied Pharmacy Services (APS) based in Mobile, Alabama. APS has been target of a federal probe for several years although no one has yet been charged with a crime.
However, in court documents provided to MESO-Rx indicate federal investigators believe APS was part of a conspiracy to distribute anabolic steroids:
[A]n illegal conspiracy to dispense and distribute anabolic steroids, which are Schedule III controlled substances, human growth hormone (HGH) and other drugs, outside the usual course of professional medical practice.
The alleged conspiracy includes Applied Pharmacy Services, Inc. with Samuel Kelley and Jason Kelley identified as major shareholders involved in the day-to-day operations of the pharmacy.
Also named in the conspiracy is Brett Branch, an APS sales rep and owner of Infinite Health in Eaton, Colorado. Brett Branch is accused of recruiting local physicians to write steroid prescriptions for customers of his clinic as well as recruiting customers from gyms around Eaton, Colorado; Branch also allegedly received commissions on each steroid prescription dispensed to customers of Infinite Health. Colorado physicians identified include Kenneth Olds, M.D., Kelly Tucker, M.D. and Scott Corliss, M.D. Dr. Tucker subsequently invested in Infinite Health to become a co-owner with Branch.
A raid on APS in December 2006 originated with Albany District Attorney David Soares. However, the federal investigation and alleged conspiracy charges are separate from the New York state investigation.
