Grand
jury to probe steroid use by top athletes
SAN
FRANCISCO (AP) ? Barry Bonds will testify
in December before a federal grand jury
that has subpoenaed several dozen athletes
as part of its probe into a laboratory that
supplies some of the nation's top sports
stars with nutritional supplements.
Bonds'
attorney, Mike Rains, said Tuesday the San
Francisco Giants slugger received a subpoena
about a month ago asking him to appear Dec.
4. Rains said he was told by a prosecutor
that "Barry is a witness and not a
target of the grand jury."
Other
athletes subpoenaed by the panel include
New York Yankees first baseman Jason Giambi,
sprint champion Kelli White and U.S. shot
put champion Kevin Toth.
The
company at the center of the investigation
is the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative,
or BALCO, which was raided by the Internal
Revenue Service and local drug agents in
September. An attorney for BALCO founder
Victor Conte confirmed Monday his client
is the target of the grand jury probe.
The
scope of the investigation is unclear, and
federal officials have refused to comment.
Meanwhile,
Conte has been accused by the U.S. Anti-Doping
Agency of supplying athletes with a new
designer steroid that is rocking the world
of track and field.
Bonds
has been a BALCO client since 2000, and
in the June issue of Muscle & Fitness
magazine credited Conte for a personalized
program that includes nutritional supplements.
The
home of Bonds' personal trainer, Greg Anderson,
was raided last month in conjunction with
the raid on Conte's lab.
"When
Barry gets a grand jury subpoena and his
trainer's door gets kicked in by drug enforcement
agents, that's when I get involved,"
Rains told The Associated Press in a telephone
interview Tuesday. "All of that has
certain ominous appearances to anybody."
Conte
has said in e-mails that he was told by
athletes that 40 Olympic and professional
athletes have been subpoenaed. Being subpoenaed
does not imply any of the athletes has done
anything wrong.
IRS
spokesman Mark Lessler wouldn't comment,
referring reporters to his agency's Web
site for a description of the responsibilities
of the IRS criminal investigation unit.
"CI's
top priority is the investigation of violations
of the tax law," the site says. "However,
CI special agents lend their financial investigative
expertise to money laundering and narcotics
investigations conducted in conjunction
with other law enforcement agencies."
Robert
Holley, an attorney for Conte, said the
BALCO founder has not been subpoenaed.
"My
client is innocent until proven guilty,"
Holley said Monday. "So far as I know,
he is the target of the investigation."
Conte
also was named by an anonymous track coach
as the source of a substance that turned
out to be a previously undetectable steroid,
tetrahydrogestrinone, or THG. Conte has
denied he was the source.
The
USADA said last week it retested hundreds
of samples from track and field athletes
after identifying THG, and that several
tested positive during the U.S. track championships
in June. They now face two-year suspensions.
On
Tuesday, track and field's world governing
body, the International Association of Athletics
Federations, said it will retest all urine
samples ? about 400 ? from the World Championships.
Any positive findings would lead to retroactive
disqualifications, including stripping of
any medals, and two-year bans.
Also
Tuesday, the World Anti-Doping Agency said
the method of detection for THG has been
sent to its accredited laboratories throughout
the world. The test was developed by the
anti-doping lab at UCLA, where the designer
steroid was identified from a used syringe
sent anonymously to the USADA.
"This
sends a strong message that there will be
no delay in catching those who cheat or
who believe they can stay one step ahead
of the system," said WADA Director
General David Howman, who called on all
drug-testing bodies to retest stored samples
for THG.
On
Monday, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said the
league might retest its samples for the
presence of THG. Steroid use is banned by
the NFL. Major league baseball has said
it will be unable to retest samples taken
this year for THG, but plans to discuss
with players whether to add it to the list
of banned substances.
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