In a separate raids conducted by police authorities in two states, a fitness club owner in Alabama and an active military personnel from San Antonio Texas were arrested together with other accomplices. Cooper Freeman, owner of Dynabody Fitness in Oxford, Alabama, was arrested when police raided his gym and his home where they found several steroids and syringes and other supplies. He was charged with three counts of distribution of a controlled substance and several counts of possession of a controlled substance. The commander of the drug task force, Lt. Chris Roberson said in a newspaper agency that they also found documents that proves the illegal activities of the club owner since it shows how he operates the distribution of these controlled substances.

Amanda, wife of Freeman, was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled substance. Billy Cole, the club’s manager, was also charged with criminal conspiracy to commit a controlled substance crime and possession of a controlled substance. The raids were conducted by the Calhoun/Cleburne County Drug Task Force with the help of Calhoun County Sherriff’s Office and Alcohol Beverage Control Board.

In San Antonio, Texas,  two suspects were also arrested by authorities for allegedly possessing and distributing controlled substances particularly steroids. The other suspect were believed to be an active military personnel of Air Force. The federal agents raided the home of the supects in the 800 block of North Alamo Street when they received reports that numerous suspicious packages were being delivered which were believed to be anabolic steroids. The suspects were later released pending lab results of substances taken from the house.

The spokesperson of the US Drug Enforcement Administration, Deborah Sibila said that the seizure is considered as the largest of its kind ever busted by the federal agents in the area. The anabolic steroids found in suspects home were in powder form. Sibila added that agents from the DEA and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration obtained a warrant to search the property after conducting a controlled delivery there. Since the substances will be sent to a lab in Dallas, the agencies will know the results of the testing within two weeks according to the spokesperson of the DEA.

Based on the agents reports, the anabolic steroids siezed from the house were believed to be Dianabol, also called D-Bol or Methandrostenolone, Anadrol, Winstrol, Anavar, testosterone base and testosterone propionate. Clomid, a women’s fertility drug typically used for steroid cycles and designed to boost the body’s natural production of testosterone was also found.

The two suspects will be facing separate charges from the DEA and U.S. Food and Drug Administration if the substances recovered from their possession were illegally obtained and marketed. The Air Force Office of Special Investigations will also take part in the investigation since one of the suspects is one of their personnel. The U.S. Postal Service will be investigated also for the delivery of the packages to the suspects.

According to Sibila, the steroids were being shipped in different states of the country. “They received the materials to mix together with other items in the house that were removed,” she said. “It was a trans-shipment operation; substances came in and went out in a different form.”

U.S. Anti-Doping Agency CEO Travis Tygart urged a group of attorneys general to take action on the state level on regulating steroids. Tygart spoke at the conference of the country’s attorneys general on Thursday and urged them to use a consumer protection laws in their respective states to help prevent and eliminate tainted and steroid-related supplements from reaching the market.”If consumers could run the land, I think federal regulations would change,” he said. “The political reality is that, unfortunately, we have to assume they’re not going to change. But that doesn’t deter you (states) from taking action.”

According to Tygart, strong lobbying efforts from the manufacturers of said supplements led to lax regulations that allow products on the market before they were even tested for dangerous or illegal controlled substances. These drugs can only be removed once they are proven dangerous. But this is nearly impossible considering the number of steroid-related cases today.

Tygart said that ephedra is the only supplement that that has been proven dangerous enough to take off the market over the last decade. The removal of ephedra from the market is due to a number of high-profile deaths, including those of Vikings lineman Korey Stringer and Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler.

In the said conference, Tygart said that scientific studies show that up to 25 percent of supplements made in the United States contained steroids and 11 percent has stimulants. Some of the steroid-like substances can be sold in the market as legal supplements because of a minor chemical change that has no adverse or significant effect on the way the drug works once ingested, Tygart added.

Also present in the conference was Kicker Vencill, an elite-level swimmer who missed the 2004 Olympic trials after a positive test for performance-enhancing drugs when he took a tainted multivitamin. Vencill has sued and won the case against the supplement company but it did not overturn his suspension or even save his chance at the Olympics. Vencill said that the “supplement industry is like the wild, wild west out there. There are no rules, they can do what they want.” “If you were trying to turn a quick buck and you didn’t have any morals, why wouldn’t you be out there doing that?”

This kind of issue is a relatively new issue in states. If they make a move, they will probably have to turn to consumer-protection statutes. States could also look at recovering expenses for government-paid health care costs for treatment of people who get sick from supplement use, much the way they did in lawsuits against tobacco companies.

Attorney General John Suthers of Colorado said he wants to study the issue on the state level. Suthers said that a group of states who work together can result to a great impact but also conceded that there’s only so much AGs offices can do, especially with their tight budget in today’s stricken economy. “We’re a complaint-driven organization and I have to admit, we’re not getting a high number of complaints at our office about mislabeled substances,” he said. “Whether we can muster the will to do something about it, I don’t know. But it’s a serious issue and I think we’ve got to look at it.”

The unending news on steroid scandals in the professional sports like the NFL, MLB and NHL still pose a major question whether they are effective in implementing anti-doping policies. Although these organizations claim that they have a well established testing program for doping athletes and stiffer sanctions for violators. But what we have noticed is the continued reports of positive tests of their athletes for performance enhancing substances. The NCAA or the National Collegiate Athletic Association is also increasing its effort to detect and control the possible steroid use among its young athletes. If the professional sports organizations will hand out with a tiered suspension plan, like a 50 game suspension for MLB players found using steroids, the NCAA on the other hand, gives a year long suspension for violators.

In the college level where the NCAA has jurisdiction, they only conduct random drug testing to student athletes. These are made during competitions or on summer breaks. The NCAA usually gives 48 hour notice to athletes if required to provide urine samples. These were sent to Drug Free Sport, a Missouri-based company accredited by NCAA. According to Frank Uryasz of Drug Free Sports, the costs of drug testing normally range from $75 to $100 per exam. However, if it will include additional test for other prohibited drugs, the cost is higher.

This is the main reason why most state colleges can’t afford to do mandatory drug testing on its student athletes. According to the president and CEO of the California Community College Athletic Association, Carlyle Carter, the problem is on the financial aspect. Since the country is still experiencing the crisis they are prioritizing the allocation of the budget. “We don’t want people to think we don’t have a concern over the health of student-athletes, but we’re not a for-profit organization and with the state of the budget crisis we can’t afford to test.” This is also the problem in other states like Texas where they already slashed to almost half the budget for steroid testing.

In a report of Gore from LA Valley Star, some of the athletes in California are in favor of conducting a drug test to all student athletes. This is to prevent other athletes to take advantage in the competitions. Joel Clements, a football player of Valley College said that he doesn’t feel steroids are a problem for their football team, but thinks that all athletes should be tested. “I’ve never seen anybody or heard of anybody I’ve played with using steroids. They need to test for it though because it gives guys an unfair advantage and that’s not right,” he said.

Athletic Department Chair Gary Honjio also said that it is important to note that its not just the athletes using steroids that should be tested. There are also students which are not into sports that may be using steroids. “There are guys in my classes, guys in the weightlifting classes that you know are using something so we pull them to the side and try to explain to them the dangers of using steroids.”

This is also revealed in a 2007 study where the most number of steroid user are not athletes but ordinary students. A study conducted by the National Institute on Drug Abuse in 2007 showed that 0.8 percent of 8th graders, 1.1 percent of 10th graders, and 1.4 percent of 12th graders had used anabolic steroids within a year of their study.

Irv Muchnick, author of Wrestling Babylon: Piledriving Tales of Drugs, Sex, Death and Scandal, posted in his blog at the suspicious nature of the latest injury of WWE wrestler champion Dave Batista, entitled Batista, Master of the Torn Triceps…And Bicep. It was also in November 2007 when he headlined an article noting the two previous occasions in which he had a particular injury, which is common to steroid users whose disproportionate muscle mass overloads tendons. And after forming the Evolution faction, Batista tore his tricep in match last March 1, 2003 live event in Reading, Pennsylvania. And according to WWE.com, weeks later during the rehab, Batista re-tore it in a “freak accident while jogging with his wife.” As a result of the accident, Batista was sidelined until October of that year.

Meanwhile, Dave Meltzer, editor of Wrestling Observer Newsletter, said last week that Batista’s frequent injuries are “definitely not just a case of bad luck.” He wrote: “Batista’s frequent injuries are hardly just bad luck. It’s a combination of age, physique, and likely a lot of muscle/tendon imbalances because he’s so big and muscular at his age. Torn biceps are not like torn triceps, torn lats and torn abs, which are usually the signs of steroid-related muscle injuries. The biceps, being a small muscle that bodybuilders train heavy, will tear more frequently on steroids, but non-steroid using lifters often don’t have problems with biceps tears. He looked to be high risk when he returned carrying noticeably more muscle mass than when he left, even though he’s now 40. His new look raised a lot of eyebrows and questions including rumors that this injury was a cover reason for a suspension. However, we were able to confirm the injury was real and you don’t have to undergo surgery to cover a drug suspension.”

Through e-mail, Muchnick asked Meltzer if he can make his comments about Batista a bit clearer because while his injury was announced as biceps, it does not necessarily mean that it was not actually his triceps. Meltzer, who rarely goes on record to outright accuse a wrestler of steroid use said that Batista’s most recent injury was indeed steroid-related.

“Obviously, it was steroid-related,” Meltzer wrote in his e-mail to Muchnick, “but in fairness, guys not on steroids also tear biceps and not triceps.” Muchnick further noted, “As soon as I can figure out what’s going on with this latest round of WWE drug PR, I’ll blog further about it.”

According to Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com, Batista is nursing a torn tendon in his biceps. The injury was not originally believed to be a torn biceps, but a tendon tear is not considered serious and would not require him to miss as much time.

In 2007, Batista made the following remarks regarding steroid use in wrestling. “There is a serious testing program in place.” “I love what I do and hate it when people say wrestlers are drugged up on steroids. I won’t accept it in the locker room and I’m in total compliance,” he said.

A resident of Dalton, UK was arrested by police officers for allegedly selling steroids to bodybuilders. After gathering enough evidence on the illegal activities of Steven Allonby of Victoria Street, Dalton, the authorities raided his home on April 9 with the help of a sniffer dog. The raid is still part of the Operation Arrowhead, a crackdown on illegal distribution of prohibited and controlled substances which included anabolic steroids. During the search on his property, the police found quantities of anabolic steroids including testosterone.

Steven Allonby was charged possession with intent to supply a Class C drug and supplying a Class C drug. He pleaded guilty last Monday for these offenses at Furness Magistrates’ Court, in Abbey Road, Barrow as reported by the the North West Evening Mail. He admitted selling steroids to bodybuilders. He had also a previous criminal record for possessing cocaine in 2007.

According to prosecutor David Mellor, “When police searched his premises they found a large number of steroids. “He said he made no profit in distribution, he was selling other products and was using these as a sideline.” This was also the statement of Allonby’s lawyer, Ben Leach. “He is trying to get his business off the ground, he was not making excessive amounts of money,” he said.

In the guilty plea, Allonby accepted that he was only selling the drugs to fellow bodybuilders. The judge handling the case said that Allonby did not do this for commercial business. It is not for profit and only intended for small scale retail supply. “It was supply to people interested in bodybuilding rather than a commercial enterprise. “You must be careful about what you do sell,” said the judge. Allonby was sentenced to carry out 80 hours of unpaid work and pay a fine of £60.

Even if this is a small time seller of anabolic steroids, arresting officer Detective Constable Jamie Eaton said that this will send out the message that we deal with Class C drugs just as seriously as the harder drugs. Detective Eaton headed the raid at Allonby’s home.

Mike Forrester, the head of the Operation Arrowhead, said that the entire operation sends out a clear message to offenders that the use or supply of drugs in the area won’t be tolerated – by the community or police. “We will continue to catch offenders and bring them to justice,” he said. “I would like to thank members of the public who have provided us with vital nuggets of information that led to the operation taking place,” he added. The police authorities at Barrow provided a contact number for anyone who could give information on drug dealings in the area. The number is 0845 330 0247.

Henry County Police are investigating what a Locust Grove man says he discovered inside his residence. He turned over to the police different bottles that were labeled as containing human growth hormones. The man also turned-over to the police numerous syringes and other materials that according to investigators allegedly belong to a WWE wrestler. “I had never looked in here and so she (daughter) was gonna put her stuff in here and just looked back in here and the boxes were just sitting there,” said the homeowner. The man also showed FOX 5 News where his daughter found the said boxes in the attic of their home. “It was actually pushed over closer to this wall,” said the homeowner as he pointed to a nearby wall.

The Locust Grove man was referring to two shoe boxes that have several small bottles labeled as testosterone, neomasteron—also an anabolic steroid, and some bottles with no marking. There were also numerous unopened syringes. When asked about the discovery of the boxes, the homeowner said “well being the fact that I have children I was horrified because my kids actually play up in that room and so the first thing I thought is what if they were to open and they would have gotten a hold of the stuff and the syringes.” The shoeboxes discovered also include personal documents with a name of a man who previously lived in the house. One of the documents was a contract between Mike Hettinga—wrestler, Mike Knox’s real name and a memorandum to W.W.W superstars in 2004 regarding the new dress code.

There have been efforts to reach Hettinga but all were unsuccessful. The wrestler did not respond to call to his cellphone Tuesday night and Wednesday night. Rev. Judson Powell, the Locust Grove man, moved into the home with his wife and six of their seven children last August and the discovery of the boxes came as a surprise.

Meanwhile, WWE declined to confirm whether Knox, who performs for Extreme Championship Wrestling, an arm of WWE, was the performer in question. The Connecticut-based organization said that four professional wrestlers lived in the house at one time, but only one is currently an active performer under a WWE contract. And while it is not illegal for WWE wrestlers to take steroids, the WWE Director for Publicity Kevin Hennesy told FOX 5 News “wrestlers can only be prescribed steroids by a physician which is rare and only for a specific medical condition and it is usually taken orally.” “If a wrestler is injecting steroids for performance enhancement purposes that would be a matter for local law enforcement,” he added.

This case is considered as the most recent drug-related incident to happen in WWE. Chris Benoit’s brutal murder of his wife and 7-year-old son and his suicide garnered national and international headlines. Also, more than 100 wrestlers under 50 have died from different causes such as drug and steroid abuse in the last 10 years. This statistic was according to the list compiled by the London Sun and other publications.