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It was going to be a hot July day — the morning after his 30th birthday — when Joshua Hodnik, formerly of Mansfield, stepped out of his south Oklahoma City home and into the cul-de-sac. Federal agents and county deputies quickly converged and took him into custody without incident.
At the behest of the Food and Drug Administration, the Tarrant County Narcotics Unit and the Oklahoma Veterinarian Board, law enforcement officials had set up surveillance on Hodnik at his home.
A fugitive for nearly a year, Hodnik had been running from North Texas authorities since August, when a federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment charging him with possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. Prosecutors said he had been using his Mansfield home as a distribution hub for anabolic steroids.
A warrant was issued for his arrest, but Hodnik fled and was not found until this summer.
In the interim, law enforcement officers said, he had tried to set up the same type of steroid-making factory in Oklahoma City that he had in Mansfield.
"At that point, we were able to secure a search warrant for the house, and we found cash, manufactured steroids, unprocessed steroid powder, human growth hormone, anabolic steroid packaging, about $10,000 in cash, and some marijuana and other drug paraphernalia," said Mark Myers of the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office.
There were at least 185 vials of steroids and enough material to make much more, officials said. The worth of the steroids was hard to figure because it is unknown exactly what was being manufactured with the unprocessed powder, but a conservative estimate was "several hundred thousand dollars."
"This is the largest steroid bust that I know of in Oklahoma County history," Sheriff John Whetsel said.
Hodnik, considered a serious flight risk, has been in federal custody since.
On Friday morning — 17 days later — Hodnik was arraigned in U.S. District Judge John McBryde’s courtroom in Fort Worth. He pleaded not guilty. His trial is scheduled for Sept. 15.
At the behest of the Food and Drug Administration, the Tarrant County Narcotics Unit and the Oklahoma Veterinarian Board, law enforcement officials had set up surveillance on Hodnik at his home.
A fugitive for nearly a year, Hodnik had been running from North Texas authorities since August, when a federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment charging him with possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. Prosecutors said he had been using his Mansfield home as a distribution hub for anabolic steroids.
A warrant was issued for his arrest, but Hodnik fled and was not found until this summer.
In the interim, law enforcement officers said, he had tried to set up the same type of steroid-making factory in Oklahoma City that he had in Mansfield.
"At that point, we were able to secure a search warrant for the house, and we found cash, manufactured steroids, unprocessed steroid powder, human growth hormone, anabolic steroid packaging, about $10,000 in cash, and some marijuana and other drug paraphernalia," said Mark Myers of the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office.
There were at least 185 vials of steroids and enough material to make much more, officials said. The worth of the steroids was hard to figure because it is unknown exactly what was being manufactured with the unprocessed powder, but a conservative estimate was "several hundred thousand dollars."
"This is the largest steroid bust that I know of in Oklahoma County history," Sheriff John Whetsel said.
Hodnik, considered a serious flight risk, has been in federal custody since.
On Friday morning — 17 days later — Hodnik was arraigned in U.S. District Judge John McBryde’s courtroom in Fort Worth. He pleaded not guilty. His trial is scheduled for Sept. 15.
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