The reason why we all got Screwed by LEXX LABS
I'm sure some of you remember the huge "scam" a few months ago by the source Lexx Labs. I believe I've found the reason for the misunderstanding..
Performance enhancers.
You hear the term in reference to professional baseball players, Olympians and most recently, celebrated cyclist Lance Armstrong - but you don't expect one of your neighbors to be dealing in illegal steroids.
Omaha police discovered in April that four local residents were players in a steroid ring with origins in China and a drug kingpin in New York. Local narcotics detectives say they stumbled onto the largest steroid bust of their careers, one involving several hundred thousand dollars of the drug.
Christopher J. Bowers, 45, of Omaha, Ryan M. Bowers, 29, of Papillion, Bernard Venditte, 31, of Omaha and Jeanine A. Rowe, 35, of Papillion each was charged with possession of illegal steroids with intent to deliver.
The four are accused of acting as delivery agents for large shipments of home-cooked testosterone cocktails.
Thousands of vials of illegal steroids were shipped into the Omaha area before and during the months-long investigation, said Omaha Police Sgt. Dave Bianchi.
Raw hormones from China were mailed to the drug operation's leader in New York.
Bianchi said the ringleader turned it into an injectable solution and then bottled, labeled and shipped the toxic product to the Omaha and Papillion home addresses of those arrested.
Their job was to repackage and mail the vials to online buyers.
The investigation began in April when a U.S. Postal Service inspector noticed something odd about two packages.
Two Express Mail packages with consecutive numbers had been mailed from different post offices in New York. Both were addressed to Christopher Bowers' home in Omaha, but the return addresses were for nonexistent businesses in New York, according to court documents.
Those were red flags, indicating that drugs likely were in the packages.
Police followed the delivery of the packages to Bowers' home in midtown and discovered hundreds of vials of testosterone.
These steroid cocktails would never be used as legitimate medical treatments, said Omaha narcotics Detective Greg Hamill.
The home-brewed anabolic steroids had labels from a fake laboratory called Lexx Labs and were named Sustanon-300, Nandro-100, Masteron-100 and Deca-300. The doses could be up to 100 times higher than those used to treat medical conditions.
Ryan Bowers
Christopher Bowers
Bernard Venditte
Jeanine Rowe
Hamill called the mixtures "ridiculously toxic."
"I believe some of the drugs would have stayed in Omaha, but we have nothing to indicate that the steroids were pushed on kids or legitimate athletes," Bianchi said.
Hamill said the majority of steroid users are men looking to quickly bulk up muscle mass.
Steroid abuse has been linked to serious health problems, including liver damage, kidney impairment or failure and enlargement of the heart, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Anabolic steroids fall under the same legal classification as the illegal possession of oxycodone or vicodin.
When Bowers was questioned, authorities said, he implicated his nephew, Ryan Bowers.
The younger man then indicated to police that a friend, Venditte, had approached him with the opportunity to make some money by repackaging steroids sent from New York, court documents state.
Police said the supplier likely had used an online message board to approach one of the Omaha-area residents, who had purchased and personally used steroids in the past.
More steroids were found in Venditte's west Omaha apartment, and then detectives uncovered Rowe's connection to Venditte and yet more steroids.
"This was the largest steroid arrest I've been involved with in 20 years," Bianchi said.
During the investigation, officers confiscated 4,430 vials - each containing 10 doses of illegal anabolic steroids.
Also collected were 3,763 grams - or more than eight pounds - of raw hormone materials that originated in China, Bianchi said.
Hamill estimated that an $800 investment in raw materials from China plus some basic lab equipment could turn into a $20,000 to $30,000 profit.
Ryan and Christopher Bowers, Venditte and Rowe were meant to be paid for each repackaged set of steroids that was sent to an online purchaser, Bianchi said.
Once the four local residents were charged, the Omaha police narcotics unit, the federal Drug Enforcement Agency and New York law officers built a case against the ringleader, Nicholas Cangiano, 34.
Cangiano was indicted in May in U.S. District Court in Nebraska on two counts: conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute anabolic steroids, and distribution of steroids.
The four local people arrested have been released from jail on bail, and their cases are set for trial in Douglas County District Court.
The felony charge against them carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a $25,000 fine or both.
Christopher Bowers, a veteran air traffic controller at Eppley Airfield, had never been charged with a crime before in Nebraska or federal court, according to court documents. The Federal Aviation Administration said he has been suspended from his job pending the outcome of the case.
Rowe had a similarly clean record. Ryan Bowers and Venditte had not been previously charged with a drug-related crime in Nebraska.
The attorney for the Bowers men and Rowe's lawyer declined to comment. Calls to Venditte's attorney were not returned.
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The 5-0 need to be put to better use. They need to be going after meth crack ect.... Why bother with steroids, it even said it was being pushed towards children, jus people trying to better themselves.
$800 dlls investment can turn into 20,000-30,000 profit??? WOW, no wonder why this industry is growing quick. I can't imagine how much money this people make in 1 year, tax free.
Good post portman---more detailed than the one I posted.
Thanks.
dexitrimIs anyone on eroids a "drug kingpin"? I certainly hope not.
"home-cooked testosterone cocktails"? What time is happy hour?
goth posted this
well, I guess I can look forward to liver damage, kidney impairment or failure and enlargement of the heart. :/ I wouldn't mind flipping $800 into 30k
I'm shocked roid rage wasn't on there
Of course they have to add the bullshit about how dangerous steroids are in the story and calling the steroids "ridiculously toxic." fucking idiots
56tooThats the propaganda machine brother