A Tampa man has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute anabolic steroids and possession of an unregistered firearm.
Mitchell Bunkowske, 32, of Land O Lakes, faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison on each count. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to the plea agreement, between January 2019 and June 2021, Bunkowske was a source of supply who sold quantities of anabolic steroids, a Schedule III controlled substance, to customers across the United States.
He used the United States Postal Service to mail vials containing different types of steroids to customers, including testosterone propionate and drostanolone propionate. Bunkowske also sold anabolic steroids to middlemen who, in turn, supplied them to other customers, including members of the United States Navy.
When federal agents executed a search warrant at Bunkowske’s home in June 2021, they found a large quantity of steroids in a variety of different forms. Bunkowske later admitted that he distributed steroids, that he did not have a medical license to do so, and that he was not a medical provider.
In addition to seizing the controlled substances, federal agents also recovered from Bunkowske’s home an FN Herstal PS90 5.7×28 caliber rifle with a magazine containing 50 rounds of ammunition. The barrel of the rifle had been replaced with a shortened barrel such that the rifle’s overall length was about 20 inches, including a barrel length of about 12 inches.
Under federal law, the nature and measurements of that rifle necessitate registration with the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record. Bunkowske did not register the firearm, making it an unregistered firearm.
This case was investigated by the United States Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with assistance from the United States Postal Inspection Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jay L. Hoffer.
Bunkowske faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison on each count.
Related Federal Cases
- Marvin ‘MJ’ Mitchell, Possession with Intent to Distribute, Florida 2019 · Texas
- Douglas Lanier Hogan, Armed Drug Dealer, Florida 2020 · Oklahoma
- Bradleigh Wayne Carter, Methamphetamine Trafficking, Florida 2020 · Wyoming
- Michael Steven Lambert, Anabolic Steroid Trafficking, Virginia 2022 · Oklahoma
- Alex Winters, Firearms and Drug Offenses, Florida 2020 · Oklahoma
Key Facts
- State: Florida
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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