Justin Pitcock (left), Bradley Barto and Corey Biggers
The Calhoun Special Operations Division and the Calhoun Police, assisted by the Conasauga Safe Streets Task Force, arrested on Wednesday Justin Pitcock, 21, of 103 Vernon Road in Rome, and Bradley Barto, 25 of 561 West Cypress Ave Springs, Fla. Another suspect, Corey Biggers, 22, of 460 Rosedale Road in Rome, was arrested the following day.
According to Calhoun Police Chief Garry Moss, the arrests came after a two-month long investigation connected to the March arrest of a Calhoun High School student allegedly caught selling steroids on campus.
Moss said an undercover agent was able to negotiate the delivery of the anabolic steroids to a location within the city of Calhoun. When the delivery was made, officers converged on the suspects’ vehicles, resulting in the arrests of Pitcock and Barto.
When officers attempted to arrest Biggers, he fled into the woods, but was apprehended the next day.
Moss said investigators believe that Biggers had been selling steroids to the Calhoun student, and Pitcock had been his supplier.
Biggers is employed by Riviera Gym in Creekview, Fla., where he is a personal trainer, Moss said. Biggers had previously been employed at a gym in Calhoun. The name of that facility has not been released.
All suspects were charged with possession with intent to distribute anabolic steroids, along with numerous other charges.
The investigation indicated there is an overseas narcotics connection. The investigation continues.
“These men were intending to bring steroids into Calhoun with the intent to sell,” Moss said. “We were stopping the sale of steroid at the original source.”
An additional $5,500 worth of anabolic steroids was seized at Pitcock's home by the Rome-Floyd Metro Task Force, according to Cmdr. Joey Jacobs.
Kids are turning into freaks of nature nowadays, and we just turn or heads to the situation. Go to any...and I mean any...high school program today, and there re seemingly behemoths everywhere.
Thirty years ago, if you were 6' and weighed 190 lbs., you probably were a Defensive End on one of our local football teams. That won't hardly get you a chance as a defensive back nowadays.
We're only fooling ourselves if we don't think that it's going on.
Kids are kids. They do things without seeing the consequences later on. But adults who deal in it are the scum of the earth.
Parents, coaches, etc., are guilty, too. Not the good ones, of which there are many. I'm talking about your local idiot who wants to win no matter what. Every family and community has one somewhere down the line.
For those that play the game fair and clean, it's not right that their accomplishments are sometimes viewed with suspicion.
But as long as we fail to really prosecute those that use steroids, and only the dealers, things will never get better.
Only when a dozen kids in a school get busted, and do a year somewhere, will fially get some individuals attention.
As ong as kids joke about it, it's just that....a joke. Well, it's not a laughing matter....it's dead serious.