FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
AUSA VICKIE E. LEDUC or
MARCIA MURPHY at 410-209-4885
SEPTEMBER 7, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
STEROID DISTRIBUTOR SENTENCED
U.S. Attorney Warns Against Use of Illegal Drugs Purchased Through the Internet
Baltimore, Maryland - U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz sentenced Michael Schlanger, age 48, of Catonsville, Maryland, today to 6 months of home detention and 100 hours of community service, followed by three years of supervised release for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 40,000 units or more of anabolic steroids, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. Judge Motz gave Schlanger a lower sentence than was called for by the sentencing guidelines.
U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein stated, “It is illegal to distribute or use steroids without a valid prescription. People who buy non-prescription steroids and other illegal drugs should give serious thought to whether they know what they are taking. In this case, people used the illegal liquids and tablets that Michael Schlanger ordered through the mail from China and resold over the internet.”
"The use of steroids without medical supervision poses a significant health risk, a risk that is greatly compounded when those steroids are purchased illegally over the internet and distributed illegally without any insurance of what substance you are truly purchasing," said James A. Dinkins, Special Agent in Charge for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Baltimore.
According to the plea agreement, from 1998 to 2006 Schlanger purchased thousands of units of anabolic steroids over the internet from foreign sources. Schlanger arranged for the steroids to be shipped to him directly, and to rented mailboxes reserved in false names. He then re-sold the anabolic steroids in the United States. Schlanger also enlisted the help of at least two co-conspirators to accept packages containing the steroids and to make wire transfers as payment to his foreign sources. At the time of his arrest on July 28, 2006, law enforcement agents found approximately 12,500 units of anabolic steroids in a storage locker rented by Schlanger. Agents also seized Schlanger’s personal computer, which contained detailed records of purchases and sales of steroids.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Mid-Atlantic Laboratory and the Anne Arundel County Police Department for their investigative work. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Giblin, who prosecuted the case.