SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -- A San Francisco-area supplement manufacturer has agreed to plead guilty to unlawfully distributing products laced with designer steroids as the result of an investigation led by the agent who spearheaded the BALCO probe.
As part of the plea bargain, agreed to Wednesday, the company known as American Cellular Labs will pay a $500,000 fine and destroy any Tren Xtreme and Mass Extreme that was not seized by the government in its raid of the company last year.
Jeff Novitzky, special agent for the Food and Drug Administration, led the investigation and accused American Cellular of selling steroid-laced products under the guise of legal supplements.
Novitzky led the probe into the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative, the focal point of a scandal involving performance-enhancing drugs that included athletes Marion Jones, Tim Montgomery and Barry Bonds.
