Multiple people charged in steroid scandal

August 11, 2014

A former South Florida clinic owner and several other individuals have been charged in federal court for the offenses of selling performance enhancing drugs and conspiracy to sell performance enhancing drugs to a wide range of athletes from the high school to the professional level. The first person arrested was the former owner of Biogenesis of America. He stands accused of distributing steroids from his clinic despite the fact that he did not hold a medical license. The Head of the Miami Drug Enforcement Administration equated Anthony Bosch to a drug dealer.

Bosch is expected to enter into a guilty plea at a future date and faces a maximum of up to 10 years in a federal prison.

After Bosch was arrested and agreed to cooperate with federal authorities, six other individuals were arrested and charged as being part of the conspiracy. Bosch undoubtedly expects a sentence reduction based on his cooperation. His sentence will be reduced commensurate with the quantity and quality of information provided to the feds. Yuri Sucart, Carlos Javier Acevedo, Jorge Augustine Velazquez, Juan Carlos Nunez and Lazaro Daniel Collazo are all charged with distributing a controlled substance and conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. These defendants are accused of recruiting all levels of athletes and referring them to Bosch to purchase the Schedule III controlled substance. Government prosecutors alleged that professional athletes paid up to $12,000 a month for the steroid while high school players were charged $600 a month.

While the alleged supplier and recruiters have been arrested, no player has been charged with a criminal offense to date. While the cases are pending, government prosecutors are currently interviewing approximately 18 boys who were 15 to 17 years at the time they were using performance enhancing drugs. Along with the boys, it is highly likely that the prosecutors will want to interview the parents of the children accused of being involved in receiving steroids from Biogenesis. Anyone receiving a subpoena to an interview must comply, but can appear with a criminal defense lawyer to protect their interests. While it is unlikely that any of the boys or their parents will be arrested, secondary concerns for the student athletes and their parents should exist.

Many of the boys implicated in the drug distribution ring have promising athletic careers at the college or professional level. While it has not been determined whether or not their involvement with Biogenesis will be an impediment to their athletic futures, their concerns are justified. The director of the sports and entertainment law center at the University of New Hampshire believes that it is highly unlikely that any of the professional athletes implicated in the case will be charged with a federal offense, unless evidence comes to light that any of the athletes were involved in the distribution of the controlled substances.

Clinic Owner Tied to MLB Steroids Scandal to Plead Guilty, CBS News.com, August 5, 2014.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/anthony-bosch-biogenesis-founder-charged-with-distributing-steroids/