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 The U.S. government filed criminal charges against Anthony Bosch
and six others tied to the clinic, where federal prosecutors allege
professional athletes paid as much as $12,000 per month for
testosterone-filled syringes and creams.
Bosch, who faced one count of conspiracy to distribute testosterone,
a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison, would possibly get
a lesser sentence under terms of a plea deal finalized on Monday.
Bosch was released on a $100,000 bond, ESPN reported.
The first federal criminal charges filed in one of U.S. sports'
biggest doping scandals also ensnared Yuri Sucart, a cousin of
Rodriguez, the New York Yankees slugger and baseball's highest paid
player, now suspended for the entire 2014 season.
None of the dozen or so players who were suspended in the fallout
from the scandal involving the Miami-area Biogenesis clinic faced
criminal charges on Tuesday.
Officials from the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and the
U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami said they are continuing to
investigate the network used to supply performance-enhancing drugs
to professional athletes and youth players.
"Professional athletes who use drugs to enhance their performance
are not heroes, they are cheaters," south Florida U.S. Attorney
Wifredo Ferrer said at a news conference.
The discovery of the repeated doping in baseball and among top
players is an embarrassment for the league which had vowed to clean
up the sport after widespread steroids use over the past decades.
Other prominent players suspended in baseball's investigation into
the doping scandal were Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun, who
was the National League's most valuable player in 2011; Baltimore
Orioles outfielder Nelson Cruz; Everth Cabrera of the San Diego
Padres and Jhonny Peralta of the St. Louis Cardinals.
SUPPLYING
YOUTH
Authorities say Bosch, who is not a doctor as many of his clients
believed, told players the drugs would not be detected in doping
tests. He also supplied them to college and high school athletes,
charging $250 to $600 per month.
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He, Sucart and another co-defendant were also involved in providing
performance-enhancing drugs to youths in the Dominican Republic hoping
to be drafted by U.S. baseball teams, authorities said.
Bosch, 50, surrendered to federal officials on Tuesday. Shackled and
dressed in a white buttoned-up shirt, he entered a not-guilty plea for
procedural reasons, said his attorney Guy A. Lewis.
Bosch and most of the others charged were expected to be released after
posting bond.
Sucart, 52, who authorities say recruited professional baseball players
for Bosch, remained in jail over questions about his Dominican Republic
citizenship. He has been living in Miami and was charged with multiple
counts of distribution of testosterone.
The investigation also uncovered a separate drug operation involving the
club drug known as Molly, a form of Ecstasy.
Carlos Javier Acevedo, 35, Bosch's former business partner, was charged
in both the doping scandal and the club drug case, authorities said.
(Additional reporting by Eric Kelsey; Writing by Letitia Stein; Editing
by Mary Milliken, Mohammad Zargham and Ken Wills)
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