U.S. authorities filed charges today against a Canadian doctor who is accused of supplying illegal drugs to professional football players. The paperwork mentions 23 athletes who received some form of treatment from Dr. Anthony Galea, and while no names were given, the doctor was allegedly on his way to Washington to treat a player when he was stopped by authorities.
Identified in the complaint as Athlete A, the player was visited at least once in Washington in August 2009 and had a second visit scheduled for September before Galea was busted. A second athlete was also visited in Washington by Galea last August, according to the complaint, but it wasn't clear whether that athlete was an NFL player.
An NFL spokesman said the league did not know the identities of any of the players treated by Galea.
"This is an ongoing federal investigation, and we have not been informed of the identity of these players," according to a statement issued by league spokesman Greg Aiello. "We obviously have a very strong interest in learning who these players are and about their involvement with any prohibited substances so that we can enforce ourpolicies. When we have had evidence of illegal purchase, possession, or use of HGH, we have imposed discipline and are fully prepared to do so again if the facts support it. We have been in touch with law enforcement and will continue to cooperate with the federal
authorities as the case moves forward."
The Redskins referred all questions related to the case to the league office. A source familiar with the investigation said the player Galea was meeting in Washington was a Redskin, which the New York Times reported earlier Tuesday. Here's what else we know, according to the federal criminal complaint released today by the U.S. Attorney's Office and analyzed by the Post's Amy Shipley:
>> Galea was arrested in September 2009 on his way to meet with a player in Washington who was receiving treatments in the "home city in which he played."
>> The player was receiving a "medical procedure" from Galea and was later interviewed by federal agents.
>> The player told authorities he never knowingly received HGH. He got IV drips, injections to his knees, and B-12 shots to his arm.
>> This player paid for the treatments and the travel expenses of both Galea and an assistant.
>> The player reserved two Washington-area hotel rooms for the Sept. 2009 treatments, but those treatments were not delivered because the doctor was arrested.
>> At the time of the arrest, among the supplies the assistant carried for these treatments was "nutropin" -- a kind of HGH -- and Actovegin, an unapproved drug in the U.S. that anti-doping people look at skeptically.
>> The player did receive vitamin drip and HGH treatment from Galea on Aug. 12 in Washington.
>> The player was treated "on a weekly basis during the season" between Oct. 2007-09. If the player was injured, the visits sometimes occured more often. It wasn't clear whether these earlier visits took place in Washington and whether he was injured prior to the Septeber 2009 appointment in Washington.
>> There are over 50 invoices from the player to Galea.
>> A second athlete -- called Athlete T in the criminal complaint and not necessarily a football player -- was visited by Galea on Sept. 3, 2009 and received an Actovegin and vitamin drip treatment.
The NFL currently lists HGH among its banned performance-enhancing substances but does not test for it.
"This case highlights the need for enhanced testing and in our discussions about a new Collective Bargaining Agreement with the NFL Players Association, we have proposed expanding our current testing program to include growth hormone," read the league's statement today.
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