In a local case that has garnered worldwide attention, a Canadian doctor who treated some of the top athetes in the world was indicted in federal court in Buffalo on a string of charges.

A federal grand jury returned a five-count indictment charging Dr. Anthony Galea, 51, of Toronto with a variety of offenses, including smuggling misbranded and unapproved drugs into the United States for the purpose of treating professional athletes.

They included human growth hormone (HGH) and other unapproved drugs. The indictment also charges Galea with conspiracy, fraud and making false statements to officers and agents of the Department of Homeland Security in order to avoid detection and to sneak the substances into the country.

The indictment charges that from at least July 2007 through Sept. 14, 2009, the defendant conspired to smuggle HGH, nutropin (a form of HGH) and actovegin (a derivative of calf's blood) into the United States from Canada. It states that he performed medical services on more than 20 professional athletes, even though he didn't have a license to practice medicine in the United States.

The indictment lists more than 70 border crossings by Galea, many of them at the Peace Bridge in Buffalo. It further alleges that once in the United States, he traveled to cities including Cleveland, New York City, Tampa, Miami, Orlando, Atlanta, Boston, Washington, D.C., Denver, San Francisco, San Diego and Phoenix for the purpose of providing medical services for the athlete-patients.

Galea was assisted by his employee, Mary Anne Catalano, with the two agreeing to falsely state to American border officials that their purpose for coming to the United States was for attending medical conferences.

"My office, along with our federal law enforcement partners, will not tolerate any attempts to either breach our nation's borders or to bring drugs that are not approved by the FDA into the United States," said U.S. Attorney William Hochul.

"There is a reason why the public expects the FDA to determine which substances can be safely used in this country. Misuse of certain substances can obviously be harmful, regardless of whether or not they are being administered by a medical professional."

The indictment is the result of an investigation by special agents of the Department of Homeland Security, under the direction of Lev Kubiak, special agent in charge of homeland security investigations; the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James Robertson; and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, New York Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Mark Dragonetti.

Conspiracy, unlawful possession with intent to distribute HGH and making false statements to federal officers and agents are each punishable by up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The maximum penalty for introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce is three years and a $10,000 fine. A conviction for smuggling carries a maximum prison term of 20 years and a $250,000 fine.