BALCO head says didn't know Mets steroid dealer, By: Adam Tanner
SAN FRANCISCO, May 2 (Reuters) - The head of the BALCO lab at the center of a sports doping scandal said on Wednesday that he never had any contacts with a former New York Mets bat boy who last week admitted to selling steroids to dozens of Major League Baseball players.
Victor Conte spoke after a U.S. federal judge issued an order on Wednesday linking his case to the one against Kirk Radomski, 37, who worked as an equipment manager and clubhouse assistant for the Mets from 1985 to 1995.
Last Friday, Radomski admitted in a plea agreement to selling banned drugs including anabolic steroids, amphetamines and human growth hormone from 1995 through 2005.
"Before I read the recent stories about Kirk Radomski in the news, I had never even heard his name," Conte told Reuters.
"I have no clue how this person could possibly be linked to me in any way. It makes no sense. From what I have read, one of the baseball players associated with BALCO, and I have no idea which one, has some kind of link with Radomski.
"In short, I don't know this person and have never had any dealings or contact with him whatsoever."
In an April court filing, U.S. prosecutors said the two cases are related and that their investigation into steroids at BALCO led to the Radomski conviction.
"While the underlying crimes charged in the Radomski case are independent of those charged against Conte, et al., the evidence in the Radomski matter was developed through the BALCO criminal investigation," U.S. Attorney Scott Schools told the court in a filing last month. "While investigating a branch of the underlying criminal investigation, investigators developed the lead that ultimately led to Radomski."
Linking the cases also means that the judge who presided over the BALCO cases that led to the conviction of Conte and others on steroid-distribution charges will oversee the Radomski case. Conte was released from prison last year after four months and spent another four months under house arrest.
NO CLIENTS NAMED YET
So far, officials have not publicly named players or clients in the Radomski case, but in his plea agreement he said he had distributed steroids to dozens from different Major League teams.
"During my past employment in Major League Baseball, I developed contacts with Major League Baseball players throughout the country to whom I subsequently distributed anabolic steroids and athletic performance-enhancing drugs," Radomski said in his plea agreement.
In one instance he received $2,000 after shipping steroids to an address in Northern California.
The renewed questions about steroids in the U.S. national pastime come as aging slugger Barry Bonds, 42, is moving rapidly to overtake Hank Aaron for the all-time Major League Baseball home run record.
The seven-time Most Valuable Player has gotten off to a strong start this season with eight homer runs, a .333 batting average and a .511 on-base percentage. He is at 742 career homers, 13 from tying Aaron.
Bonds remains under investigation for possible perjury to a BALCO grand jury when he testified he never knowingly used steroids.
