The Albany Times-Union says the Orlando pharmacy task force used phone taps to investigate the anabolic ring. Looks like the Albany prosecuting attorney acquired evidence via wiretap. (We wonder how the newspaper was able to review evidence? Can reporters freely go over crime investigation evidence?)
Tony Palladino, a corporate account manager at Signature, fielded the call and explained to the man that they only filled prescriptions. He advised the caller to contact Infinity Longevity, one of several Florida "wellness centers" that authorities allege funneled thousands of illicit prescriptions to Signature Pharmacy.
"Just ask for Anthony," Palladino told the caller. "He's the only one there. They'll tell you everything you need to do."
The conversation is one of many contained in hundreds of pages of affidavits and wiretapped telephone calls -- which were reviewed Friday by the Times Union -- that underscore the tightknit between Signature and a slew of Web sites and doctors whom investigators have accused of conspiring to funnel steroids and other similar drugs to customers across the nation.
Signature Pharmacy was raided prior to this bust, by the DEA:
It probably came as no surprise to Signature's officials when they were raided Feb. 27. It was the second time in three years, although the first raid, by the DEA, yielded no criminal charges.
The first time, in July 2004, Henri Hoskins, a cop in Orange County, Fla., told the agents who arrested him for illegally buying steroids that Signature was a known supplier.
"Hoskins stated that, in his opinion, anyone at Signature Pharmacy should know that many of the customers obtaining the steroids are using them for bodybuilding," an agent wrote in an affidavit used to obtain a wiretap against the company. "Interviews with other bodybuilders indicated that patients needed only to submit to a one-time blood test ... (and a doctor) would initiate a body enhancement program.
The Orlando Sentinel puts together a speculative time line that clarifies the Internet pharmacy situation. Good link. This investigation started 3 years ago.
Comments