Pro fighter in steroid case escapes jail time in plea deal, By: Mike Cruz
BARSTOW - A professional cage fighter who was charged with possessing steroids will get no jail time under a plea bargain with prosecutors.
Buckley Acosta of Newberry Springs was arrested by Barstow police July 18 in connection with a package containing 12 syringes of testosterone-based steroids tracked by U.S. Customs officials from Central America.
The shipment was bound for a Barstow motorcycle shop in the 800 block of East Williams Street, where Acosta was an employee, police said.
Under the plea bargain, Acosta, 27, pleaded no contest to possession of a controlled substance Tuesday. He must participate in a Proposition 36 drug-treatment program and will be on felony probation for three years, said Deputy District Attorney Julie Peterson.
Acosta was originally charged with possession of a controlled substance for sale, but he pleaded to the lesser offense of just possession, according to court records.
"He's statutorally eligible for the drug-treatment program," Peterson said.
If Acosta had not qualified for the program, he could have faced between
16 months and three years in state prison, prosecutors said.
Acosta also has a prior offense of assault with a deadly weapon in March 2001 for which he was sentenced to two years in prison, according to court records.
Paul Henderson, a deputy public defender who represented Acosta in court, said he could not comment on the case without authority from his client. Calls to a Newberry Springs phone number listed to Acosta were not answered.
Steroids are often used by bodybuilders and athletes to enhance their performance.
Acosta is a professional cage fighter who has fought in various cage-fighting venues, according to police. One of his more recent fights took place at Madness at the Memorial on July 1 at Memorial Auditorium in Sacramento.
