Memphis, TN - Today, a federal criminal complaint was unsealed which charged Memphis Police Officer Brady Valentine with violations involving assisting illegal trafficking in anabolic steroids. The defendant was arrested today and relieved of duty. This announcement was made today by David Kustoff, United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, Larry Godwin, Director of Police Services for the City of Memphis, My Harrison, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Memphis Division, and Mark Luttrell, Shelby County Sheriff.

Brady Valentine (age 36) has been an officer with the Memphis Police Department since 1994 and holds the rank of sergeant. He is assigned as a drug interdiction officer at the West Tennessee Drug Task Force. According to the affidavit, based upon information developed during the investigation - including interviews of informants, conversations recorded by informants and a court-ordered wiretap - there is probable cause to believe that Valentine has assisted drug dealers by tipping them about possible informants, police surveillance and police drug interdiction activities. As stated in the affidavit, one informant, a long-time drug trafficker, advised that Valentine received regular payments from this trafficker for three years in exchange for assisting approximately one marijuana shipment per month. That relationship ended with the arrest of one of the trafficker's associates at the end of 2000. The affidavit states that this trafficker subsequently recorded conversations with another individual in Spring and Summer 2007 in which this other individual indicated that he and Valentine worked together in purchasing and redistributing anabolic steroids.

According to the affidavit, beginning on August 30, 2007, the other individual's telephone conversations were monitored pursuant to a court order. The affidavit alleges that the monitored conversations revealed the following assistance provided by Valentine to that individual:

1. In a monitored telephone call on September 9, 2007, the individual told Valentine that a cop in an unmarked car was following him. Valentine told the individual which officers were on duty and what they were driving and instructed the individual to stay on the telephone so that he could respond if the individual was stopped.
2. On September 16, 2007, the individual called Valentine and asked him to be available the following Wednesday because the individual was delivering "a thousand of these D-ball tablets." "D-ball" is slang for a anabolic steroid called Dianabol, which is a Schedule III controlled substance. This individual told Valentine, "I want to know that, hey, I can call you up and hopefully get out of trouble."
3. On September 19, 2007, the individual called Valentine and advised him when he was to make the delivery, then the individual called Valentine several times while he was driving, and then the individual called Valentine and confirmed that he had made the delivery.
4. On September 23, 2007, the individual called Valentine and advised that he would be making another delivery, Valentine confirmed the days on which he would be on duty, and the individual commented that it was "nice" knowing that Valentine would be on "standby just in case."
5. On September 25, 2007, the individual called Valentine and advised that he was making the delivery and Valentine provided information about his activities that night, including information about an ongoing drug enforcement operation. On September 26, 2007, the individual called Valentine and said that he was going to call Valentine the previous night but that everything was "cool."

According to the affidavit, beginning on September 26, 2007, this individual began cooperating with the investigators. The affidavit alleges that this individual confirmed that he and Valentine had assisted each other in purchasing and distributing steroids and in September and October 2007 he recorded conversations with Valentine. The affidavit states that during a recorded conversation on September 27, 2007, Valentine warned that individual about the risk of law enforcement undercover operatives posing as drug buyers and advised that individual to sell only to people he knew: "stick with people that you've know for, you know, seven, eight, ten years, you'll be alright." The affidavit also alleges that, during a recorded conversation on October 9, 2007, Valentine advised the individual to hide the steroids in a vitamin bottle while transporting them: "[i]f you went and f__kin' (unintelligible) you a vitamin bottle like this and put'em, empty the vitamins out and put'em in here... wouldn't nobody know what the f__k they are, if you did get stopped." The affidavit also alleges that, during a recorded conversation on October 23, 2007, Valentine told the individual that "40's free and clear" and asked the individual, "you did what I said with the vitamins, right?" The affidavit also alleges that, during another recorded conversation on October 23, 2007, Valentine confirmed that he had hidden evidence of his past involvement in illegal activity, that he had been concerned about a wiretap on his telephone and that he could no longer be tied to his past activities.

United States Attorney David Kustoff commented, "By now it is clear that we will aggressively prosecute criminal misconduct by law enforcement officials and government personnel. But, more must be done to increase public awareness that anabolic steroids are dangerous drugs and that we will also aggressively pursue cases against steroids traffickers and those who enable the trafficking. Included in this press release are internet links to materials provided by the DEA, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy and the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which describe steroids, their effects, the extent of the abuse of these drugs and other enforcement actions against steroids manufacturers and traffickers."

MPD Director Larry Godwin commented, "The citizens of Memphis expect their law enforcement officers to conduct themselves in a professional and ethical manner. As always this administration will fully investigate any criminal complaint against our officers. We reiterate the message that misconduct, corruption and criminal activity have no place on the Memphis Police Department."

Penalties

The complaint alleges violations of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846 (attempted possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute) and Title 18, United States Code, Section 2 (aiding and abetting). The penalties for violations involving anabolic steroids are a maximum prison term of five years, a $250,000 maximum fine, plus two years supervised release, and a $100 special assessment. The complaint also alleges violations of Title 21, United States Code, section 843(b) (use of a communications facility to facilitate a felony violation of the Controlled Substances Act), and the penalties for violating this section are a maximum prison term of four years, a $250,000 maximum fine, plus one year supervised release, and a $100 special assessment.

Other Sources for Information About Anabolic Steroids

Press Release Describing Recent Major DEA Enforcement Actions Against Steroids Trafficking:

"DEA Announces Largest Steroid Enforcement Action in U.S. History" (Sept. 24, 2007)
http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/pubs/pressrel/pr092407.html (announcing Operation Raw Deal: the largest steroid enforcement action in U.S. history, which in conjunction with enforcement operations in nine countries worldwide, targeted the global underground trade of anabolic steroids, human growth hormone (HGH) and insulin growth factor (IGF))

Websites providing information about the physical effects of steroids use, relevant legislation, recent enforcement actions, and links to other sites:

DEA website: "Steroids: What you need to know" http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/concern/steroids.html
Office of National Drug Control Policy website: "Drug Facts: Steroids"
http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/drugfact/steroids/index.html

National Institute on Drug Abuse: "Research Report: Anabolic Steroid Abuse" (Sept. 2006)
http://www.nida.nih.gov/ResearchReports/Steroids

Conclusion

The FBI, DEA, Memphis Police Department, the Shelby County Sheriff's Office and the IRS are participating in Operation Tarnished Blue, and this matter was investigated as part of Operation Tarnished Blue. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joe Murphy, with the Memphis office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee.

Note: Charges brought against a person through a complaint or indictment are accusations only. That person is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

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