Florida law enforcement officials are clearly concerned about the middle-aged European men on hormone replacement therapy. A 45-year old German national flying into the Southwest Florida International Airport was arrested on June 23, 2009 after federal agents discovered a therapeutic dosage of anabolic steroids in his luggage.
A United States Customs and Border Protection agent searched Francesco Gigliotti, of Cologne Germany, upon his arrival at the Florida airport. Lee County Port Authority reported that the customs agent discovered a single 2-mL vial of nandrolone decanoate and a 250-mg/ml ampoule of testosterone enanthate along with syringes and needles for two injections in his bag (”Man arrested for smuggling steroids into RSW,” June 24).
The small dosage of androgens for a middle-aged man traveling overseas from the European Union was clearly consistent with therapeutic use. U.S. Customs officials and Fort Lee County law enforcement are taking the threat of middle-aged men on hormone therapy flying into the United States from Europe very seriously. Read more
Richard and Sandra Thomas, former competitive bodybuilders who competed in 2001 NPC Mid-Florida Muscle Classic mixed pairs competition, were arrested after undercover narcotics detectives recovered several thousand dosages of oral anabolic steroid, injectable steroids, and steroid paraphernalia some of which may have been destined for professional athletes. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) obtained an anticipatory search warrant in preparation for the controlled delivery after Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Philadelphia notified them that a large shipment of anabolic steroids was destined for the Lakeland, Florida home of Richard and Sandra Thomas. Polk Sheriff Grady Judd reported the steroid seizure as the largest in the history of the PCSO. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office apparently also seized copies of the steroid reference books “Anabolics 2007” and “Anabolics 9th Edition” which the photographer felt compelled to use creatively in official photographs of the steroid seizure Read more
The Brooksville Police Department has started making arrests in an undercover narcotics investigation codenamed “Operation D-Bol”. Operation D-Bol targets anabolic steroid distribution within the city limits of Brookville. Law enforcement has determined that steroids threatens the safety and welfare of the estimated 8,000 residents in this small Florida community. Operation D-Bol resulted in the arrest of Michael Earl Maurer Jr for the sale and possession of anabolic steroids on March 22, 2009 (”Investigation: Operation D-Bol: Arrest – Sale of Anabolic Steroids / Drug Seizure,” March 22).
On the listed dates the Brooksville Police Department Criminal Investigation Division conducted undercover narcotics operations (Operation D-Bol) into the sale of anabolic steroids in the City of Brooksville. The operation utilized a confidential informant who arranged multiple purchases from a reported steroid supplier. The supplier delivered the steroids to the informant’s home on March 21 and again on March 22, 2009. After the second delivery and sale the suspect was immediately arrested by police personnel. A subsequent search of the supplier’s residence at 23110 Skyview Circle, Brooksville resulted in the recovery of additional illegal steroids and hundreds of syringes used in administering the drug.
The Brooksville Police Department’s decision to launch a full-scale undercover operation targeting low-level steroid dealers represents a questionable use of significant resources. The small community of Brooksville has 27 police personnel and a $1.8 million operating budget. The undercover surveillance of steroid users/dealers, bodybuilders at local gyms in Brooksville proves that no town is too small for the war on steroids.
Prosecutors representing the State of Florida and Albany County (New York) methodically planned to prosecute Signature Pharmacy in two separate steroid investigations in a manner that would deprive the defendants of protections against double jeopardy according to court documents.
William N. Shepherd, the Statewide Prosecutor for the Florida Attorney General, and David Soares and Christopher Baynes, prosecutors for the Albany County District Attorney’s Office in New York allegedly had a secret in-person meeting where they specifically planned complex legal proceedings in two jurisdictions to make it more difficult for Signature to defend itself. The plan was detailed in a report by Mark Haskins, an investigator with the New York Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement, who worked with Albany County District Attorney David Soares in the Signature Pharmacy steroid investigation.
The Florida Legislature refused to continue funding a pilot program for steroid testing of high school athletes. State budget problems did not allow legislators to justify spending $175 to $200 per student on random testing for anabolic steroids. Out of 700 tests costing approximately $100,000, one high school student tested positive for anabolic steroid use (”Prep drug testing runs out of juice,” May 19).
The Florida High School Athletic Association will present the results to the legislature in October, Llorente said, but the FHSAA already has a good idea of what they are.
FHSAA spokeswoman Cristina Alvarez confirmed Monday that more than 700 student-athletes have been randomly tested this school year, and only one test came back positive. The positive test was from a football player, Alvarez said, and no athletes from the winter or spring seasons have tested positive.
Rep. Marcelo Llorente, the bill sponsor, feels that $100,000 is a small price to pay to catch a single steroid user.
“It shows that the program deterred young high school athletes from using steroids,” Llorente said. “If we deter one young person in the state from doing steroids and intervene in a positive fashion, I think it becomes a worthwhile endeavor.”
Fortunately, at least one athletic director is a little more reasonable when addressing the issue of steroid testing in high school.
Not everyone agrees. Boca Raton Athletic Director Bill Massey pointed out that it “cost us $100,000 to find that one student.”
“It was a nice idea, probably a more politically correct thing to do,” Massey said of the testing. “To test 1 percent of the state is not a significant number that the student-athletes modified their behavior, and I don’t think it’s as widespread as we would like to say among athletes.”
