BOSTON — A Saugus man pleaded guilty to his role in a conspiracy to traffic counterfeit steroids, including testosterone and trenbolone.
Brian Petzke, 49, appeared in federal court and pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances on Wednesday after he and five others, including Tyler “musclehead 320” Bauman, were arrested and charged with operating a counterfeit on the North Shore in April 2017.
The defendants manufactured steroid products made from raw materials purchased overseas for nearly two years between May 2015 to April 2017, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s office. The products were marketed as “Onyx” steroid, using the brand’s labels.
They allegedly sold the steroids to customers across the country, using email and social media platforms and collected payment through payment services such as Western Union and MoneyGram. They used false identifications and multiple remitter locations to pick up the proceeds.
Some of the defendants allegedly laundered proceeds from the steroid sales through Wicked Tan LLC, a tanning business in Beverly that they owned and operated specifically specifically for that reason.
The charge of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss of the conspiracy.
Petzke is the final defendant to plead guilty in connection with the conspiracy. U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M Gorton scheduled sentencing for May 8.
