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[Definitie:] "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance."
(Wilmore and Costill) 
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0 6 - 1 0 - 2 0 0 6 Former cop admits to steroid charges
Zellers says he operated as 'Label Docktor'
The Times of Trenton A former Lawrence police officer pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Trenton yesterday to possessing anabolic steroids and making and selling fraudulent prescription labels for steroids that he mailed to customers across the country.
John Zellers, of Washington Township, abruptly resigned from the Lawrence Police Department in June after 10 years on the force. Yesterday, he pleaded guilty to two federal crimes in front of Judge Garrett E. Brown Jr. and admitted that he was the person behind the online moniker "The Label Docktor," who distributed fake prescription labels so people could disguise illegal substances in their possession. Zellers made contact with buyers through online bodybuilding venues. Zellers, who has won several bodybuilding competitions in the past few years, faces up to four years in federal prison and a fine of up to $110,000 when he is sentenced in January. Lawrence police spokesman Lt. Thomas Ritter, who is also the internal affairs investigator for the department, said the department was unaware of Zellers' activities and did not play a role in the case against him. Ritter said the department did not even know he was scheduled to be in court yesterday. Zellers worked as a patrol officer for his entire career with the Lawrence police, the department said. The federal charges against Zellers cover a time period from October 2004 to May 31, 2006, the date that investigators apparently searched his residence. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Office of Criminal Investigations brought the case against Zellers. The FDA declined comment on the case yesterday, saying it was an ongoing probe. Zellers admitted in court that on May 31, he possessed anabolic steroids in his home and in a safe deposit box he controlled. About $15,000 in cash was also found in the safe deposit box, Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Schweiker said in court yesterday. He also admitted he did not have a valid prescription for the narcotics. As for the labeling, Zellers admitted he had visited Web sites that sold supplements and drugs, including steroids, to bodybuilders and he was in the business of making labels for pill bottles, boxes or other packages that people used to store their steroids. Zellers admitted to being "The Label Docktor" and that he made, mailed and accepted payments for the labels and knew they were misleading labels, that they included lot numbers and expiration dates that were false or fabricated. He also admitted to questioning by Schweiker that he knew the labels would be used on drugs shipped across state lines and that the steroids he made labels for were available by legitimate prescription only and were not available for prescription in the United States. Zellers pleaded guilty before indictment as part of a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney's Office, and one of the stipulations was that he forfeit the $15,000 found in his safe deposit box in May. Zellers is free on $50,000 bond and cannot leave the state of New Jersey while awaiting sentencing. After the brief court appearance, Zellers' attorney, W. Les Hartman, declined comment on behalf of his client. The Zellers case, officials say, has no connection to the ongoing federal probe of up to a dozen Trenton police officers, who are under scrutiny for allegedly illegally obtaining human growth hormone, known commonly as HGH. The Times learned of the HGH investigation in May, and learned from sources that part of the investigation has to do with fraud, not drug use, that the officers allegedly used their city health insurance plans to pay for the HGH. The probe of the Trenton officers is being headed from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Camden, which has neither confirmed nor denied the probe. Kevin Shea can be reached at (609) 989-5705 or kshea@njtimes.com |
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