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Josh Hodnik
01-16-2014, 11:45 PM
Pinnacle Labs: All Good Things
by: Josh Hodnik

Source: VPXsports.com

Somewhere, in the back of my mind, where you hear the voice that tells you something is too good to be true, a steady alarm was going off. Not just going off. Getting louder. It seemed that every time I logged into my e-mail there was a rumor of another underground lab being busted. There was nothing solid - there never was - but they seemed to be dropping like flies. It worried me.

It seemed that the FDA's Office of Criminal Investigation was taking the steroid business very seriously, and they were willing to spend tons of money on investigation and prosecuting. Statistically this understaffed and virtually unknown branch of the FDA produces a per/agent bust and seizure record that shames the rest of the alphabet soup government agencies.

I feel that law enforcement needs to focus on much more threatening issues, but that is just my opinion, and that is a whole other story. In my own case, I might have helped a few quarterbacks get a few more touchdowns, but nobody ever reported a problem from using my gear, and I certainly wasn't hurting anyone. And I wasn't exactly advertising on the nightly news; the only way you were going to find me was if you came looking for steroids.

It was February of 2007, and things had been pretty calm and quiet over the last few weeks. That is a good thing in any business where illegal activity is involved.
But the last few weeks of February changed very fast. I started getting reports from my customers that packages that were not making it to their destination. I felt as if I was always being followed. Things just didn’t feel right.

I had opened a few different storage units, hoped that I wasn’t being followed when I opened them. I took everything that I had that was illegal in my home and stashed it in two different units. I wasn’t going to touch anything until things felt more safe. This has been common practice with bootleggers since the first drips of alcohol started coming out of a still in the backwoods of the Appalachians. You never keep your brewing equipment at your house, and you never keep the product on you. It's just good business sense, if you're running an illegal business.

Vinnie (who was in charge of storing and shipping) had recently finished school in Michigan, and he moved back home in Sacramento where he continued to ship products for me.

On February 27th, 2007 I got a call on my prepaid phone from Vinnie telling me that he was on his way to pick up a large package that had been shipped to him containing steroids. I didn't hear from him again after he picked up the package. Part of me thought he'd been arrested. I checked all of the legal databases I could find to see if he was arrested, and I couldn’t find anything. This is a common tactic with law enforcement - they don't book someone's arrest anywhere official if they're trying to turn him. Maybe they make the arrest late on a Friday, so he can't make bail until Monday morning. There are a lot of tricks used by the law enforcement community to turn a guy. And when you're talking about a person you don't hang out with, a guy who you know by a screen name and maybe a voice on a disposable phone, there's no loyalty. I was about to find all of this out firsthand.

I know that Vinnie had just started a new job, and I'd been hoping that he was just busy with that. A few days later Vinnie, or I assumed it to be Vinnie at the time had sent me a private message on one of the message boards saying that his truck got stolen the night he picked up the package, and that his phone was in the truck. This seemed like a far out story, but I wanted to believe it more than I wanted to believe that he had been arrested. Believing that he got arrested meant believing that I would probably be next.


A few weeks had passed and I had not heard from Vinnie. I figured he either was arrested, or he got tired of the business and wanted to retire with a ton of my product to sell locally. I was really hoping that he just ripped me off. This is actually a pretty common retirement package in the steroid community - we don't get a 401k, so a lot of remailers just quit when they have a ton of product in hand to resell, and keep all of the profits as their severance pay. And sources do the same thing - they keep taking orders for their last month and then just disappear with everyone's cash.

On Friday, March 9th, 2007 I got in my truck to head to my PO Box, where I had 3 different packages containing cash in them. On the way to the PO Box, I noticed a helicopter that hovered above me while I drove from Mansfield (Texas) to Arlington. This freaked me out, but as soon as I got close to the PO Box location, the helicopter changed directions, so I convinced myself it was just coincidence.

As soon as I got home, I made sure there were no cars outside my residence before I went in. I looked at all 3 of the cash envelopes before opening. One thing I immediately noticed was that all 3 address labels were written in the same blue ink, and they all 3 had the same handwriting. These 3 packages came from 3 different individuals from 3 totally different parts of the United States. There was no way for me to convince myself that this was coincidence and I started to freak out.

I finally calmed myself down knowing that if I stopped what I was doing, that it might not lead anywhere. I had to just stay put. I couldn’t carry anything illegal in or out of my house. This scare had convinced me that I should retire. I would get all of the steroids out of my house once I thought things were ok.

I found out on March 13th at about 9:30 am that law enforcement didn’t need anything else to get me.




I heard a very loud knock on my front door on a gloomy Tuesday morning. I looked out the shades of my front window, and I noticed there was law enforcement everywhere in the street, in my front yard, and probably behind my house. They were strapping on their bullet proof vests and I knew that they were about to come in.

I had a few seconds to decide what I needed to do. I ran to try to start flushing all of the steroid powders I had, but I knew there wasn’t enough time. I stood frozen in the middle of my kitchen when SWAT kicked in my front door and swarmed inside the house. The quickly cuffed me and carried me out to a car where I sat while they searched the residence. I knew I was done, and that I was going to do some serious prison time for this. The feds seized $17k in cash along with about 5 kilos of steroid powder, several 1000ml jugs of finished steroid oils, along with other bottles, vials, etc.



Later that morning I was transported to the Tarrant County Jail where I was booked on state steroid possession charges. I knew I was in deep. I had to bail out at all costs. I was still on probation in Tarrant County, and I knew it would only be a few days before they caught wind of this. Once that happened, no bail would be set. I also knew that the feds were probably going to pick this case up, and when that happens, the feds will probably refuse bail as well.

The next morning I saw a judge and bail was set at $25K. Within a few hours of having the bail set, I was out and on my way back home. I knew this is not where I was going to stay. I knew what the future held, and I wasn’t going to hang around to make things easy for law enforcement to put me behind bars. They were going to have to work to find me. I was about to become part of the DEA's Top 5 Most Wanted Fugitives.

The good thing is that I still had a storage unit filled with steroids that the feds did not know about, and I still had about $50K in cash put back somewhere that I could get to keep me afloat and help me relocate. This is essential if you're going to live a criminal lifestyle - some people I know even have something called a "go bag" sitting at their house or at a friends. That's exactly what it sounds like - a bag full of clothing, money, a prepaid cell phone, and anything else they might need to have when they abandon ship.

I had plans for the St Patties Day parade on Dallas that coming weekend. I knew this was what I needed to keep my mind off of my legal problems. It would also give me a few days to get everything set in place before I could leave. After partying for the weekend in Dallas, I contacted a guy in Arlington that I had dealt with in the past named Stevie.

Stevie was not the sharpest guy, or the most sane guy, but if you wanted something done, he was always willing to take a risk. I contacted him asking him if he wanted a job. We agreed that he was going to use what was in the storage unit to make and ship steroids to my customers. I wasn’t going to touch any of it, and we agreed to split everything 50/50. This is another thing you need when you're a bootlegger; a bunch of contacts who are crazy enough to help you out of a jam, even if it means giving the finger to the federal government.

I knew I needed to save money for what I was facing. I knew lawyers wouldn’t be cheap, and I wanted something put back while I was in prison. That is why I decided to continue to run my operation with Stevie.



After everything was set up I moved to Oklahoma City. Stevie didn’t even know that I had left Texas. I kept it that way. I would drive down every few weeks just so we could meet and exchange money. These meetings never lasted more 5 minutes tops.

In August of 2007 I got a call from an associate of mine that told me I needed to check the news. Stevie had been busted and Pinnacle Labs products were all over the news. This was not good. Stevie had apparently been selling to a pro bodybuilder who'd been working with law enforcement.

I was shocked by the bust, and I was scared at the same time. I was hoping they did not know where to find me at. I decided to close the Pinnacle Labs brand all together. I still had 3 customers left that I knew I could still ship to that would keep my bills paid. They were big time customers and I knew they weren’t working with law enforcement. And by "big time" I mean they were dealers in their own right, making orders far too large to have been personal use.

I was just doing the best I could to keep my head above water. Getting steroid powders was getting harder and harder. Many of the Chinese suppliers were being arrested for shipping to the US. They never did any time, and they went back into business shortly after the Beijing Olympics in 2008, but the temporary embargo on steroid powders was making it increasingly difficult to earn a decent living. Nobody believed that China would remain closed for business forever, but I didn't have forever. At least regular bootleggers could always get corn to make their moonshine.

I knew things were going to come to an end soon, I just didn’t know when. I hated running, and I hated always looking over my shoulder.

For 16 months I lived in Oklahoma City before finally being apprehended in front of my house on July 8th, 2008. Part of me was scared out of my mind at what I was facing, and another part of me felt a huge relief and not having to run anymore. Being on the run had to be the most stressful time in my life.

Dec 12th, 2008 was 3 years to the date that I was released from prison with my plan. It was also the day that I stood in from of Judge McBryde for my federal sentencing. My sentencing guidelines came back at 51-63 months. I was sentenced to the top of my guidelines at 63 months. Rarely do the feds ever make any kind of deal unless you are cooperating with them to bring other people down, and I had not only been a huge steroid dealer, but I also made the mistake of going on the run from the feds. That doesn't make anyone happy in the end.


I didn’t believe in doing things that way, so I refused to cooperate and I just took the 63 months and dealt with it.

The first federal prison I landed at was Pollock USP. This is a maximum security prison right in the middle of the swamps of Louisiana. This place was the most insane thing I have ever seen. There were daily stabbings and beatings. Usually over drugs or gambling debts left unpaid. The inmates ran this prison, and the guards just stayed out of the way as much as possible. This is the stuff of movies, except it's real life.

After spending some time at Pollock without getting in any trouble, my security points were lowered, and I was sent to a medium security facility at Leavenworth. Leavenworth, was built in 1897 and has a reputation of being a very rough spot. This has changed over the last decade or so. After spending time at Pollock USP, Leavenworth seemed like being at a daycare. I would spend the rest if my time at Leavenworth until my release.

I always think back and wonder if I would do it all over again. The money was great, doing what I did made me feel big and powerful, but at the end of the day I knew where it would eventually lead me. I may not always agree with the laws that are in place, but the law is what it is, and I have follow them even though I may not agree with them. I do think the government is too harsh on performance enhancing drugs. There are way too many issues in our society that need a bigger focus. There are violent crimes that go unpunished and there's white-collar criminals ruining people's lives who never see the inside of a prison cell. Enron, AIG, Arthur Anderson, I could go on for days...

Even though I feel this was, if I could do things over, I would not choose the same path I chose in the past. That life is behind me for good.

But it's not over for Pinnacle Labs. While I was in prison another Pinnacle Labs began doing business, popping up seemingly out of nowhere, using my old name. I have nothing to do with this guy (or guys) and I can't predict the future, but I can tell you that unless he takes the money and runs while he can, and gets out of the game, he'll end up just like me. And just like me, I'm sure another lab will pop up to take his place - maybe even using the name Pinnacle.

HackTwat
01-16-2014, 11:56 PM
First thing I re-read after I found out Presser was bringin you aboard the other day.

Josh Hodnik
01-17-2014, 12:13 AM
This was actually my first article ever published.

sosasghost
01-17-2014, 05:39 PM
Pinn... Nice to see you around. These articles bring back a lot of good/bad memories. GG/ORD screwed so many people. Then another one knocked off the rest, BUlk Up I believe it was called. That one nabbed a close friend of mine. The SSB days got us all..lol Its crazy how shit turned out, some learned lessons, some didnt. Man I remember getting on SSB one day to check some PM's and there it was. LE had it all. The slimmy Bosnian gave it all up, or maybe Samar gave it all up. I think you were caught up in their mess and felt the wrath. The Bosnian and Samar got off light, well, I assume Samar did. GA damn sure did. When biz is wide open like walmart what did people expect. After all that, everything went private for a long time, obviously, not long enough. The community was torn in half and stumbled to put things back together. But yes, bootleggers are everywhere. Remember the votes on the top UGL's this or that. We were both on that list, at firs its like hell yeah, then reality sets in and its like, fuck no, heat will follow. Stevie was in the trailor that was all over the news I guess, I remember thinking damn, Pinn is one of the good guys. You were and are a rare breed bro.
Got popped and didnt rat!!! Boss status on that one.

Josh Hodnik
01-17-2014, 07:20 PM
Gym Ace did give up a lot of people I believe. I am not positive because I have not seen the paperwork. I just know that JTP got more time than anyone on his case. You said that we both were being voted on at SSB. Who were you with?

sosasghost
01-17-2014, 09:50 PM
I would have filed a motion of discovery and seen it all. The person I was cool with is in the feds now, I dont want to say his name, im sure you understand. He got in a little over his head I guess but dude had it going on. I got spooked and tried to warn him, he brushed it off. He was caught up in operation bulk up, great guy and ass wad in Ohio put the feds on him. Some of your gear was top 5 on a few old boards. SSB, ABB, CS and I remember it on warrior's board but I cant remember the damn name (you were gone before that one launched I think).
Hell, when I got in a bind I would holler at you back in 06 for a thing or two..lol
Hell, fucking Samar, if you remember him, he was GA's domestic clown. He got reported for climbing fucking street lights and putting cameras up from what I was told, brilliant. He went from fry cook to bar or club owner in no time..lol Fucking joke.. The guy had multiple delivery trucks at his house 5 days a week, I think he was popped first and spilled the beans. GA was caught in phuket (sp?) island almost last. He may have been working already but he got 6 months is what I was told.
Either way, long time ago, things change and life goes on. Its nicer now pulling down my street and not worrying about feds waiting on me..lol

Josh Hodnik
01-17-2014, 10:05 PM
I did get me discovery and still have it. I was the only defendant on my case, so a discovery does me no good with GA