A drug sniffing dog was apparently responsible for a steroid bust at the Mexican border in El Paso on December 12, 2008. A United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer stopped a 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer at the primary border inspection booth on the Paso del Norte Bridge in El Paso after the driver appeared unusually nervous. A drug sniffing dog named “Shadow” detected steroids carefully concealed inside the dashboard of the Trailblazer during a secondary inspection. Juan Carlos Castillo was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) special agents and held without bond in the El Paso County Jail for attempting to smuggle 150 vials of anabolic steroids into the United States (“Steroids in dashboard and pot in fuel tanks busted by agents,” December 15).
The steroid seizure was made early Friday evening when a 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer entered the downtown Paso Del Norte international crossing from Mexico. A CBP officer at the primary inspection booth noticed that the driver was nervous during a routine interview so the vehicle was selected for a secondary exam. During the secondary inspection, CBP drug sniffing dog Shadow alerted to the dashboard of the vehicle. CBP officers continued their exam and discovered bundles of anabolic steroids concealed in the dashboard. CBP officers removed a total of 150 vials of steroids from the dashboard compartment.
The steroid stash consisted of steroids manufactured in Mexico and sold under the brand names XT Labs and Astrovet Veterinarian Products. Astrovet and XT Labs are two of the many relatively new brands of anabolic steroids originating in Mexico that have replaced the void left by Operation Gear Grinder. Operation Gear Grinder temporarily disrupted the illicit United States steroid trade by shutting down eight Mexican companies that accounted for an estimated 82% of the black market steroid trade. The Operation targeted Quality Vet, Denkall and Animal Power, Laboratorios Tornel, Laboratorios Brovel, Pet’s Pharma, Syd Group and Loeffler.
Astrovet and XT Labs manufacture various steroids products, many of which were seized during the unsuccessful smuggling attempt. The Astrovet injectable steroid line includes Testovet 300 (testosterone blend), Testovet E300 (testosterone enanthate), Decavet 300 (nandrolone decanoate), Equivet 200 (boldenone undecylenate), Trembovet 100 (trenbolone acetate), Methenovet 100 (methenolone enanthate), Stanovet 50 (stanozolol). The XT Labs injectable steroid line includes Stanoplex (stanozolol), Boldeplex (boldenone undecylenate), Testoplex 300 (testosterone cypionate), and Decaplex (nandrolone decanoate).
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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