Bodybuilder from Milton Keynes jailed for being part of 'world's biggest' illegal steroid drug ring
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Nathan Selcon, 45, enjoyed a flamboyant lifestyle running a sports nutrition supplement shop called Athlete King and taking part in bodybuilding competitions.
But behind the scenes he was working as a 'fixer' for a man who was importing tonnes of potentially dangerous anabolic steroid drugs into Europe from a pharmaceutical company in India.
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The drugs, similar to those used by the London Bridge terrorists, may have been supplied to 'top-class professional athletes' in the UK, say the National Crime Agency, whose experts ran a four year investigation into the ring.
The NCA believe the ring was world’s biggest ever illegal anabolic steroid distribution network
Selcon last week admitted at the Old Bailey conspiring to import steroids. He was jailed for six years.
The court heard he lived in a lavish £1m house in Milton Keynes and drove a fleet of luxury vehicles, including a Ferrari and a Range Rover.
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He worked as a fixer for Jacob Sporon-Fiedler, who ran Mumbai-based company Alpha Pharma, producing millions of pounds worth of unlicensed steroids, supplying four tonnes of the drugs to the European market per month.
Sporon-Fiedler was funnelling his profits through bank accounts in Hong Kong, Singapore and the Seychelles.
Selcon worked alongside another fixer, Gurjaipal Dhillon from West London. He also had links to Alexander MacGregor and Mohammed Afzal, who had set up a purpose built illicit steroid laboratory to manufacture their own branded drugs.
Inside the labs, raw powder would be converted into a liquid solution that could be injected and sold in vials, the court heard.
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Sporon-Fiedler was sentenced to five years and four months, while Dhillon was jailed for five years and Afzal for two years. MacGregor will be sentenced at a later date.
NCA branch commander David Cunningham said after the case: “The important thing to remember is that all of these drugs were completely unregulated and unchecked, therefore they posed potentially major health risks to those who used them.”
He added: “This organised crime group was the most prolific of its kind ever uncovered, likely the biggest global players in the illicit anabolic steroid market.
“They had the ability to move tonnes of steroids into Europe where they would be sold on the black market, making tens of millions of pounds in profit.
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“Sporon-Fiedler thought that by orchestrating this network from abroad he was untouchable, but following his arrest he found we had so much evidence against him he felt he had no choice but to plead guilty.
“We have managed to directly link him to 16 tonnes of illegal steroids imported into the UK, however it is likely this group were responsible for far more. Intelligence supplied by the NCA has triggered multiple seizures and criminal investigations by law enforcement partners across Europe."
The NCA investigation drew on assistance from 30 different agencies in 26 different countries. In the UK that included Border Force, UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). The Danish police and German customs service also supported.
UK Anti-Doping’s (UKAD) Director of Operations, Pat Myhill said: “We are very pleased with the outcome of this investigation. Our congratulations go to the team at the NCA for a successful resolution to this complicated case, which has identified significant distribution of image and performance enhancing drugs (IPEDs). Not only are these drugs a threat to clean sport, but they pose a very real danger to health.”