Anabolic steroid possession for personal use is technically legal in Canada although a steroid user lacking a medical prescription could have the drug seized. Only steroid trafficking, steroid manufacturing and steroid importation are illegal under Canadian law. The penalties for steroid importation are not always particularly severe in the absence of evidence of distribution.
S. Satir, Ph.D. of Canada, a civil engineer and top amateur bodybuilder, was fined $1000 after he pleaded guilty to one charge of “failing to report imported goods” in May 2009. The Crown dropped one charge of “smuggling prohibited goods” as part of the plea agreement.
Satir was caught in possession of approximately 26,000 tablets consisting of six different types of steroids and five different bodybuilding ancillary drugs on February 4, 2009. Customs officials at the Halifax Stanfield International Airport discovered the drugs repackaged in supplement bottles and a wooden backgammon set in Satir’s luggage. Satir was returning home to Canada on a flight from the United States after visiting Turkey for two months (”Bodybuilder fined $1,000 for trying to bring steroids, other pills into country,” May 27).
Mr. Satir told investigators that he had purchased the drugs in Turkey for $2,000.
“He advised that he had obtained the pills for his own personal use, and the Crown has no evidence to the contrary,” federal prosecutor Suhanya Edwards told the court. Read more
