MedFit Owner Gets Jail Time, $335K Fine Over Steroid-Like Supplements

A sport supplement company owner has pled guilty over charges he distributed unapproved drugs, garnering more than a year in federal prison and a $335,000 fine, according to the Department of Justice.

The owner of MedFit Sarmaceuticals Inc., formerly known as MedFitRX Inc., Brian Michael Parks reportedly entered a guilty plea in Virginia federal court after a years-long investigation into supplements sold by his North Carolina Company. Parks was charged with one count of distributing unapproved new drugs with the intent to mislead and defraud consumers and the Food and Drug Administration, said a DOJ statement.

The guilty plea comes after repeated warnings by the FDA to Parks and other company executives about the misleading advertising of their dangerous product. In 2017, the FDA sent a warning letter to the company about its “Ostarine MK2866” and “LGD MAX” products. The agency stated it had “significant safety concerns” about the products that were marketed as dietary supplements.

The FDA warning letter noted that the products contained selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs).

“Life threatening reactions, including liver toxicity, have occurred in people taking products containing SARMs. SARMs also have the potential to increase the risk of heart attack and stroke,” said the agency in its warning letter to MedFit.

“Sports supplements’ that are manufactured and distributed outside the FDA’s oversight and that contain unapproved and possibly toxic ingredients endanger the health of unsuspecting consumers,” Assistant Commissioner for Criminal Investigations Catherine A. Hermsen, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations said in the DOJ announcement.

Parks has also admitted that ingredients were omitted from the labels of MedFix products in an attempt to dupe consumers and the FDA, and that he lied about the company being licensed to register and sell new drugs in order to import raw drug ingredients. He also admitted to falsely marketing the products as “sports supplements” or “dietary supplements” to make consumers think they were safe and legal.

“Bypassing the FDA drug approval process puts consumers at risk,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division in the DOJ’s statement about Park’s guilty plea. “The department will continue to work with the FDA to investigate and prosecute the illegal distribution of supplements that contain dangerous ingredients.”

Did you purchase any MedFit steroid-like drugs? Are you concerned about the charges? Tell us what you think in the comment section below.

Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:

• Primal Max Red ED Supplement Doesn’t Work As Promised, Class Action Says
• Cobra Sexual Energy Class Action Settlement
• Clothing & Restaurant Coupon Text Lawsuit Investigation
• Marijuana Dispensary | TCPA Lawsuit Investigation