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SAN FRANCISCO - US baseball home-run king Barry Bonds used steroids and then lied about it to a federal grand jury, US prosecutors said today in charging him with perjury and obstruction of justice.
The indictment, filed in US District Court in San Francisco, stems from the investigation
into the Balco lab case, whose top figures served jail time for distributing steroids to top athletes.
The all-time major league baseball home run king has long been the focus of a federal probe over suspicion that he lied to the Balco grand jury in 2003 when he told them he never knowingly used performance-enhancing drugs.
A lawyer for Bonds said he would plead not guilty.
The seven-time most valuable player surged late in his career to break one of the greatest records in American sports - the career record for home runs. He surpassed Hank Aaron this summer and finished the season seven homers ahead at 762.
Although many fans wondered aloud about the source of his power at an age when most athletes see their talents fade, Bonds, 43, has long denied any link to performance enhancing drugs.
Steroids give an athlete enhanced power, endurance and fast healing from injury.
"I take this indictment very seriously and will follow its progress closely," said league commissioner Bud Selig.
Despite huge success on the field, Bonds' abrasive personality and the doubts about steroid use kept him from gaining widespread popularity, especially beyond fans in San Francisco where he played most of his career.
"During the criminal investigation, evidence was obtained including positive tests for the presence of anabolic steroids and other performance-enhancing substances for Bonds and other professional athletes," the indictment said.
If convicted on a perjury charge, Bonds could face up to five years in prison. Obstruction of justice could bring up to 10 years imprisonment.
The indictment comes just weeks after Olympic sprinter Marion Jones relinquished the five medals she won at the 2000 Games after admitting she used performance-enhancing drugs.
The news quickly reached US President George W Bush, a former co-owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team. "The president is very disappointed to hear this," White House spokesman Tony Fratto said. "Clearly this is a sad day for baseball."
Bonds' longtime team, San Francisco Giants, which recently chose not to offer him a contract for next season, called it "a very sad day". Bonds was hoping to sign with another team.
Victor Conte, the head of the Balco lab who has long said he never provided Bonds with steroids, said he was very surprised by the indictment.
"I certainly haven't seen all of the evidence in Barry's case, however, I've seen a lot of it and I just don't think there's enough to meet the standard of beyond a reasonable doubt," he said.
"They say it's possible to `indict a ham sandwich' and, unfortunately, I think it's going to take a very long time for us to find out if that's what they've done," he said.
Personal trainer and boyhood friend Greg Anderson was imprisoned in the Balco case on steroid-distribution charges and then was returned to prison for declining to co-operate in the Bonds probe.
Anderson's lawyer said he did not co-operate with authorities, and local media reported a judge ordered he be freed on Thursday.
Federal prosecutors had struggled to make a case against Bonds with his trainer mum on the issue.
"The items set forth here all seem to hinge on potential testimony from Greg Anderson," said John Burris, a lawyer for Bonds. "It would be unlikely you could prove these allegations that have been made without Greg Anderson's testimony."
"If you don't have them then this is just a sham."
Prosectors do not need Anderson to make the case, said Kevin Ryan, the former US Attorney who started the Balco case in 2002.
The indictment reprinted a question from Bonds' 2003 testimony. "Did he ever give you anything that you knew to be a steroid? Did he ever give a steroid?"
The slugger replied "No." Later he added: "Greg wouldn't do that. He knows I'm against that stuff."
In subsequent questions, Bonds specifically declined taking steroids, testosterone, and other substances and had not been injected by Anderson or his associates.
- REUTERS
