Kristen Mealer, the most recent owner/operator of the underground steroid lab known as “Hell Fire Labs”, has pleaded guilty today to a single count of conspiracy to distribute anabolic steroids. Federal agents had raided Kris Mealer’s Arkansas home, his gym Stone County Fitness Center, and a warehouse. Agents discovered 400 grams of raw steroid powder and 6,626 mL of liquid steroids during the steroid bust. Mealer admitted to distributing 185,029 dosage units of various anabolic steroids (“Feds say national steroid ring had Western Pa. connections,” May 12).
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Houghton said Mealer agreed to join the steroid ring known as “Hell Fire Labs” in January 2007 and that his participation continued until federal agents busted the operation in February 2008.
Agents raided Mealer’s Arkansas home and fitness center, Stone County Fitness Center. They also raided a warehouse, where Houghton said they discovered an “operational, underground anabolic steroid lab.”
Houghton said the lab was provided by a co-conspirator in Vandergrift in order to convert steroid powder into a usable liquid form. She said another ring member in Indianapolis provided Mealer with 250 e-mail addresses for customers, who ranged from Western Pennsylvania to Washington.
Hell Fire Labs was founded prior to 2006 and previously based in Vandergrift, Pennsylvania. Hell Fire Labs started with the distribution of DNP and other non-controlled ancillary medications. They eventually expanded their product line to include various oral and injectable anabolic steroids.
Kris Mealer did not join the organization until approximately January 2007. It appears that one of the co-conspirators operating Hell Fire Labs prior to January 2007 shipped the laboratory equipment and supplies to Mealer. Mealer took over operation of the underground steroid lab and distributed the Hell Fire Labs steroids via the Internet. Mealer admitted to distributing 185,029 dosage units of various anabolic steroids including testosterone, methandrostenolone (Dianabol), chlordehydromethyltestosterone, boldenone undecylenate (Equipoise), methenolone enanthate (Primobolan Depot), nandrolone decanoate (Deca Durabolin), dromostanolone propionate (Masteron), oxymetholone (Anadrol), nandrolone phenylpropionate and oxandrolone (Anavar) (“Arkansas man pleads guilty to selling steroids,” May 12).
Mr. Mealer joined an organization to sell the steroids online using the brand name “Hell Fire Labs,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Houghton. He received a complete steroid lab in the mail from another co-conspirator in Vandergrift. It included raw powders, glassware and heating plates.
Mealer faces 24 to 36 months in prison for his role in the conspiracy but could receive a reduction in his recommended sentence depending on his level of cooperation. According to his plea agreement, Mealer has agreed to fully cooperate with law enforcement agencies “investigating violations of federal drug laws” between January 2007 and February 2009 and has agreed to “testify in grand jury, pretrial, trial, sentencing and post-conviction proceedings” in Pennsylvania and elsewhere.
U.S. District Judge Arthur J. Schwab will sentence Mealer on October 30, 2009. The federal prosecutors in Kris Mealer’s case have previously prosecuted Tommy Chong on paraphernalia charges for selling bongs and the company that manufactures The Whizzinator on steroid paraphernalia charges.
It is unknown whether other co-conspirators in the Hell Fire Labs organization have been publicly identified and/or prosecuted.
About the author
Millard writes about anabolic steroids and performance enhancing drugs and their use and impact in sport and society. He discusses the medical and non-medical uses of anabolic-androgenic steroids while advocating a harm reduction approach to steroid education.
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