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[Definitie:] "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance."
(Wilmore and Costill) 
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2 4 - 0 7 - 2 0 0 5 Drugstore burglar sentenced to 12 years
John Lowney says he stole narcotics from up to 100 N.J. pharmacies. They were later sold by a motorcycle gang.
By Troy Graham Armed with crow bars and hacksaws, John Lowney and his crew broke into as many as 100 pharmacies all over South Jersey in order to steal powerful narcotic prescription drugs, authorities said. Lowney, 39, then took the drugs to his native Lynn, Mass., where they were sold by the East Coast chapter of the Hell's Angels motorcycle gang. Lowney, who was arrested in May 2003 while doing a solo drug-store burglary, was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Camden to 12 years in prison. He pleaded guilty in April to one count of conspiracy to distribute narcotics. The charge encompassed seven drug-store burglaries, including ones in Medford, Marlton and Sewell. After his arrest, Lowney told investigators that he may have committed more than 100 burglaries.
Lowney and his crew focused on Lowney often worked with three or four other men. They targeted Eckerd drug stores because "they had figured out the alarm system," Stigall said. They would cut the phone lines and use crow bars to enter through the back after hours. In the seven burglaries included in Lowney's guilty plea, anywhere from 2,500 to nearly 8,000 pills were stolen in each case. Lowney's attorney, Richard Coughlin, argued yesterday that his client had never been involved in violence or weapons, and he never burglarized a residence. "What there is is a long history of drug abuse," Coughlin said. He said Lowney first became addicted to steroids during his youth, when he was a bodybuilder. Lowney, reading from yellow legal-pad paper, said he was in desperate straits from his drug addiction. "I found it easy to convince myself that I wasn't hurting anyone," he said. "It was when I finally caught the attention of the DEA that I realized I was in big trouble." An ad hoc task force of local and federal authorities was cobbled together through the months and years, as Lowney and his crew continued to hit drug stores. He was under surveillance in May 2003 when he was arrested. Lowney ended up living in Cherry Hill after an arrest in Camden County for a pharmacy burglary in 2001. He completed a drug-offender program that required him to live in the county, then he decided to stay in the area. Stigall told the judge that, while Lowney may have never been involved in violence, the "potential for violence certainly existed." His involvement with the Hell's Angels also raised concerns, Stigall said. "I don't think I need to tell your honor how notoriously dangerous that group can be," he said. Investigations into the Hell's Angels and Lowney's crew are continuing. |
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