Compton man makes plea agreement with prosecutors over steroid distribution

A Compton man has agreed to plead guilty to possession and distribution of illegal steroids over the internet. Federal prosecutors in Los Angeles announced the agreement Monday.

An international trafficking investigation in 2007 rounded up more than 120 people, including Warren Abramson. Prosecutors charged him with intending to sell about 200 gallons of anabolic steroids – a controlled substance that mimics the male hormone testosterone. Athletes often use the steroids to help them build up muscle, but the substance carries a risk of causing serious mental and physical health problems. The volume on hand amounted to more than a quarter-million doses. In a plea agreement, prosecutors also said Abramson kept four firearms, three silencers and more than 4,500 rounds of ammunition at the Compton address he used as his lab. Abramson has agreed to plead guilty on five drug and weapons-related counts.

The court hasn’t scheduled his plea hearing; he faces as many as 55 years in federal prison and one-and-a-quarter-million dollars in fines. Most of the other suspects arrested in the investigation have pleaded guilty. Law enforcement agencies from Mexico, Canada, Thailand, Sweden, China and four other countries participated in the investigation.