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1 3 - 0 8 - 2 0 0 5 Man arrested on steroids charge
Police allege stockpile worth $250,000 to $350,000
BY SCOTT GUTIERREZ OLYMPIA -- An Olympia man faces drug charges after narcotics detectives found thousands of doses of steroids inside his home, authorities said Friday.
Jeffrey S. Bell, 31, was arrested at his apartment on Donavan Loop, south of Olympia, on suspicion of unlawful possession of steroids with intent to deliver. He was booked at Thurston County Jail but posted $5,000 bail and was released. "Obviously this is the beginning of a big investigation if you've got this many doses," said Lt. Loreli Thompson of the Thurston County Narcotics Task Force. The investigation started with a tip to the drug task force. Steroids are illegal to possess without a prescription. Detectives searched Bell's home and found between 20,000 and 40,000 doses in both pill and liquid form, task force officials said. "There will be a little more investigation into where he is getting them," task force Sgt. Fred Bjornberg said. "We know he's distributing it." Detectives estimate the seizure totaled about $250,000 to $350,000 in street value, he said. Bell is a bodybuilder and helps prepare other bodybuilders for contests, Bjornberg said. Bell has drawn attention from the task force in the past for performance-enhancing drugs. In 2002, he was sentenced to five months of work release and 240 hours of community service after he entered an Alford plea in response to a charge of attempted possession of steroids with intent to deliver and unlawful possession of testosterone, court documents say. Under an Alford plea, a defendant doesn't admit guilt but concedes that a jury likely would have convicted him based on the evidence. The 2002 case started with a Drug Enforcement Administration investigation into packages containing cash that were sent to a mailbox belonging to Bell's fiancee. She told detectives that the couple owned an exercise video business and sometimes received cash through the mail, court documents say. Detectives obtained a search warrant for Bell's home in that investigation and found 33 pills that turned out to be methandrostenolone and a bottle full of liquid that authorities determined was testosterone, court documents say. As part of his probation in that case, the court ordered him to avoid bodybuilding competitions and personal training, court documents say. Much of Thursday's seizure came from a veterinarian supplier, Bjornberg said, adding that Bell was cooperative during the investigation. 1 6 - 0 8 - 2 0 0 5 Huge Steroid Bust In Thurston County
August 15, 2005 THURSTON COUNTY - Thurston County detectives tell us it's the biggest steroid bust they've ever made -- more than 40,000 doses worth more than $1.5 million on the street. But the local body builder targeted in the arrest claims detectives are blowing the case way out of proportion. He talked only to KOMO 4 News, telling us he's just doing what it takes to compete. At first, suspect Jeff Bell was reluctant to talk about his arrest, saying he didn't know if his attorney would approve. But eventually, like former major leaguer Jose Canseco with his tell-all book on steroid use, Bell told KOMO 4 News openly that he uses steroids, and believes there is nothing wrong with it as long as people are careful. "That's the only way to level the playing field," says Bell, a professional bodybuilder. "And if you're not using and others are, they're going to have that advantage." Thurston County Sheriff's detectives busted Bell on Friday for allegedly possessing and planning to sell steroids. They found both pills and liquid steroids, along with needles to inject the drugs. After talking with both a pharmacist and a veterinarian, detectives estimate they found more than 40,000 doses. "Obviously the amount that this particular suspect had is far beyond what the average person would have," says Sheriff's Captain Brad Watkins. Bell told KOMO 4 he is a professional consultant who's taken numerous body builders to competition wins. When asked about the health risks of steroids, he answered, "Before I take on any client, they have to go and get a physical and blood work done both before and after." He also said he wouldn't work with anyone under the age of 18, "because of the simple fact once you're 18, you're an adult, you can make your own decisions. Before that I won't work with them." But later, Bell said he doesn't give steroids to any of his clients: "They're on their own and my recommendation is always that they go see a doctor themselves." Bell added that everything detectives seized in his apartment was for his personal use for next year's national competition in which he planned to compete. Detectives say that's laughable: "The amount of dosages that he had was up over 40,000 dosages," says Captain Watkins, "and if it was for his personal use it was going to be for his personal use for many, many, many years to come." Bell says this case is being blown way out of proportion and that police estimates of both the doses and value of the steroids in his apartment are highly exaggerated. But the Sheriff's Office is taking this seriously. Bell has one prior conviction for steroid possession and they're hoping to get a conviction this time that could lead to as much as five years in prison. |
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[Definitie:] "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance."
(Wilmore and Costill) 
