Conte Says He’ll Plead Guilty in BALCO Case

Victor Conte, the figure at the center of the BALCO steroids scandal, has entered into a plea agreement with federal prosecutors, according to a statement Conte provided to The Times late Thursday night.

The founder of the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative -- accused of supplying performance-enhancing drugs to dozens of elite athletes -- said he has agreed to plead guilty to a single count of conspiracy to distribute steroids and a single count of laundering a portion of a check.

“Mr. Conte has always accepted responsibility for the conduct reflected in this plea agreement and is looking forward to putting the case behind him,� his attorney, Mary McNamara, is quoted as saying in the statement. Federal prosecutors could not be reached for comment.

According to the statement, the prosecution and Conte will ask U.S. District Judge Susan Illston for a sentence of four months imprisonment and four months home detention.

Conte said he would not be required to assist in the prosecution of anyone else involved in the investigation.

The BALCO scandal broke open in September 2003 when federal, state and local agents raided Conte’s office in Burlingame, Calif. Authorities were looking for the source of a new and potent designer steroid known as THG.

Dozens of famous athletes were subsequently paraded before a grand jury as part of the investigation.

Olympic gold medalist Marion Jones was linked to the case, as was San Francisco Giant slugger Barry Bonds and New York Yankee star Jason Giambi.

Conte, BALCO executive James Valente, track coach Remi Korchemny and Greg Anderson -- who served as a personal trainer to Bonds -- were indicted on multiple felony counts in a San Francisco federal court.

The fallout sparked widespread concern about rampant steroid use in baseball. A parallel investigation by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency resulted in several top track-and-field athletes -- including sprinters Kelli White and Tim Montgomery -- being banned from competition.

White told reporters she had received steroids and other substances from Conte. Montgomery’s case is currently being considered by arbitrators.

The scandal deepened with two developments in December. First, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that Bonds had told a grand jury that he used substances given to him by Anderson, but had not believed them to be steroids.

Then, Conte appeared on ABC’s “20/20� and said he not only supplied banned substances to Jones, but also watched her inject herself with human growth hormone. Jones has sued Conte for defamation in civil court.

Conte’s statement said that, in exchange for his plea, all remaining criminal counts against him will be dropped.