Former Antioch cop found guilty of conspiracy to distribute anabolic steroids, obstruction of justice
Thursday, May 15th, 2025
Convicted April 30, Devon Wenger claims innocence, calls them “bogus charges against me,” awaits sentencing, suing APD for retaliation, discrimination, hostile workplace harassment
Also faces trial in July for deprivation of rights under color of law
All part of FBI investigation of multiple Antioch, Pittsburg police officers
OAKLAND – A federal jury on April 30, 2025, convicted former Antioch police officer Devon Wenger of one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute anabolic steroids and one count of obstruction of justice. The jury’s verdict follows a three-day trial before Senior U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White.
Wenger, 33, was previously employed as a police officer with the Antioch Police Department. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Wenger conspired with Daniel Harris, who was at the time also a police officer with the Antioch Police Department, to distribute anabolic steroids to a third individual, and then deleted evidence of this conspiracy from his cellular phone.
“Instead of upholding the law, as he swore an oath to do, Devon Wenger conspired with a fellow officer to sell illegal anabolic steroids. When the FBI arrived at his home to investigate him, he then doubled down by destroying evidence of his crime. Crimes like these by a police officer have a corrosive effect on the public’s trust in law enforcement. Thanks to today’s jury conviction, Mr. Wenger will now face sentencing for his violations of law,” said Acting United States Attorney Patrick D. Robbins.
“When Devon Wenger broke the law and then tried to cover his tracks, he didn’t just commit a crime — he betrayed the trust of the community he was sworn to serve. After learning the FBI was outside his home with a search warrant, he chose to delete evidence rather than come clean. That kind of misconduct corrodes public confidence in law enforcement,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Sanjay Virmani. “Today’s guilty verdict makes clear that the FBI will hold accountable anyone who abuses the authority and responsibility of public service.”
According to the evidence presented at trial, in February 2022, Wenger set up the sale of anabolic steroids, a Schedule III controlled substance, between Harris and a third individual. Harris was also charged in this case and pleaded guilty to his role in the conspiracy on Sept. 17, 2024. Law enforcement officials seized the package of anabolic steroids destined for Harris before they arrived, although Wenger continued to communicate with Harris about supplying the third individual with anabolic steroids, including offering to give this individual some of Wenger’s own while they waited for the delayed package.
On March 23, 2022, at 8:03 a.m., the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) began calling and sending text messages to Wenger telling him that they were outside of his residence with a warrant. It was not until 9:00 a.m. that Wenger appeared for the FBI to seize Wenger’s cellular phone. Later forensic examination of that device showed that specific entries related to the anabolic steroid distribution conspiracy had been deleted: specifically, all text messages between Wenger and Harris, all text messages between Wenger and the third individual he was trying to supply with steroids, the contacts for both Harris and the third individual, and recent call log entries for Wenger’s most recent phone calls with the third individual.
The jury convicted Wenger of all counts charged in this case: one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute anabolic steroids in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846, 841(a)(1), and (b)(1)(E)(i) and one count of destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in federal investigations (obstruction of justice) in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1519.
Wenger is scheduled to appear on May 6, 2025, for a hearing on whether to remand him to custody pending sentencing. He faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison on the conspiracy to distribute anabolic steroids count and 20 years in prison on the obstruction of justice count. Any sentence will be imposed by the Court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
The case is being prosecuted by the National Security & Special Prosecutions Section and the Oakland Branch of the United States Attorney’s Office. This prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI and the Office of the Contra Costa County District Attorney.
Faces Trial for Separate Charges of Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law
Separately, Wenger appeared before Senior U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White on May 6, 2025, for a status conference in United States v. Wenger, 23-cr-00269, which charges Wenger with one count of conspiracy against rights in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 241 and one count of deprivation of rights under color of law in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 242. The United States v. Wenger, 23-cr-00269 case is set for trial on July 21, 2025.
Wenger Claims Innocence, Suing APD
When asked for a response, Wenger wrote, “Unfortunately I cannot give a full statement. This is all I can say, I am innocent. I am a whistleblower facing a whistleblower retaliation prosecution to silence me. I am being framed on fabricated and tampered evidence. Yes, the FBI and the US Attorneys on this case have fabricated and tampered with evidence, in addition to misrepresenting evidence and even lying to the court, and the public. They have been gone so far as to manipulate and suppress the documents that prove this (including exculpatory evidence) in the metadata data of their own discovery documents in order to push their false narrative. The truth will surface. That’s all I can say.
“If you have any further questions, please contact my mom. She has all of the proof and evidence to validate my claims.
“In addition to this we have filed a civil lawsuit against APD which outlines everything they put me through which led to these bogus charges against me.”
He shared copies of both his Motion of Acquittal and for a New Trial, and lawsuit filed filed Feb. 28, 2025, against the Antioch Police Department and former Antioch Police Lieutenant Powell Meads, who was Wenger’s superior officer. The complaint claims retaliation, discrimination, hostile workplace harassment, failure to prevent harassment, discrimination or retaliation and requests damages and a trial.
UPDATE: Wenger Offers Additional Comments, Claims He’s “Being Framed”
After reading the above information from the DOJ’s press release, Wenger offered additional comments. He replied that the article, “got a lot of it wrong in regards to the ‘crimes’ but that’s to be expected as the government is saying things that are flat out not true.
Christ is my lamp guiding me through this valley of shadows. The truth will surface and you will see it.”
“Despite what the government is falsely boasting nationwide about me I never have had anything to do with steroids. Never took them, never possessed them, and sure as heck never conspired to distribute them. I took PEPTIDES, gonadorelin to be specific. It’s legal and NOT a steroid. I took the peptides to recover from COVID, COVID almost killed me and had me in a hospital bed and left my body in shambles. I still feel the effects of it to this day and will never fully recover. The FBI even seized gonadorelin and numerous other peptides failed to disclose that.
“The case was built on a package that belonged to Daniel Harris which was intercepted and tampered with by the FBI as outlined in the motion I sent you. This package contained peptides and the FBI added steroids when they tampered with it confirmed by the weight difference when the package was originally shipped up to just prior to the seizure by the FBI and when the FBI listed different box measurements and a different weight in their report when they searched the package days after they intercepted it. Again, this is covered in the motion I sent you.
“Daniel and the ‘third party’ Brendon Mahoney were contacting each other directly, I had no knowledge what they were talking about. I assumed Brendon was purchasing the same peptide I purchased from Dan. However, I was never involved with any agreement nor any exchange of money or anything at all. I offered to pick up mahoney’s peptides since we all lived in different states and Mahoney and I would see each other at national guard drill, that’s it. The government is misrepresenting vague text messages to try and falsely claim I had steroids when I never did. I was not aware of Dan’s nor Mahoney’s conduct nor conversations. The government was aware of all of this, as I told them what I took was legal and they still misrepresented this to the court, the jury, and the people.
“My phone was illegally seized by the FBI and DAI Wallace / DAI Holcomb. It was never a ‘joint’ investigation, it was federal the whole time confirmed by internal FBI communications that they tried to hide from my lawyers and I. DAI Wallace and Holcomb were assigned to the federal agency acting as de facto federal agents, t put it simply they were acting as federal agents not, state ones. Wallace also fabricated the ‘anonymous letters’ the Pittsburg Police Department received and fabricated evidence to back legally seizing my phone.
“Additionally, FBI N-DEx (National Data Exchange) agents seized and searched my phone without any federal warrant and manipulated my phone settings and deleted many things off of my phone including signal messages since they were set to auto delete prior to my phone being forensically imaged. The federal prosecutors intentionally misrepresented this to the jury, claiming it was me and thus, they charged and convicted me with destruction of evidence. Additionally, they served the warrant at the wrong house. I had to drive to them to surrender my phone. I was complaint the whole time and even gave them an interview where I told them what I took was legal.
“Additionally, the government falsely claimed I deleted contacts and Venmo contacts from my phone, yet that is not true. These contacts and Venmo contacts remain in my phone to this day. They never left. Now, my phone was backed up to iCloud the night before the phone seizure and the government could have searched my iCloud and seen that I never deleted anything from my phone, yet they did not even though they seized everybody else’s iCloud. This is because they are pushing a false narrative.
“I encourage you to read the motion I sent you, for those who also want to read it, it’s on PACER. I forgive the prosecution, the FBI, APD, the DA’s office, and everybody involved in this. I wish them nothing but prosperity and long blessed lives with their families. I have no hate, only love. However, the truth will surface. God has a way of doing that. I encourage all involved to repent and seek Christ. Glory be to Christ as the only way to Salvation be through him. I am innocent, I am in fact being framed, and I am a whistleblower facing horrific whistleblower retaliation, but it is Christ who will carry me through this difficult time and reveal the truth.
“This isn’t even everything. The FBI and federal prosecutors manipulated the evidence in discovery as confirmation via the metadata of the discovery documents. They also are hiding exculpatory evidence under layers and layers of code so that my legal team and I are unable to access it. When they do provide evidence, it’s often under a protective order or heavily redacted so that I am unable to view it. What is happening here should shock and concern every single American. This should not be allowed, and the White House needs to be aware of what is occurring here.”
Charges Are Part of Larger FBI Investigation of Antioch, Pittsburg Police Officers
The charges against Wenger were brought as part of an investigation into the Antioch and Pittsburg police departments that resulted in multiple charges against 10 current and former officers and employees of these two police departments for various crimes ranging from the use of excessive force to fraud. The status of these cases, all of which are before Senior U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White, is below:
Case Name and Number | Statute(s) | Defendant (Bold: multiple case numbers) | Status |
Fraud 23-cr-00264 | 18 U.S.C. §§ 1349 (Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud; 1343 (Wire Fraud) | Patrick Berhan | Sentenced to 30 months custody, 2 years supervised release concurrent with 24-cr-157 on 9/5/24 |
Morteza Amiri | Convicted at trial 8/8/24, remanded to custody pending sentencing, which is set for 6/3/25 | ||
Amanda Theodosy a/k/a Nash | Sentenced to 3 months custody, 3 years supervised release 11/15/24 | ||
Samantha Peterson | Sentenced to time served, 3 years supervised release 4/24/24 | ||
Ernesto Mejia-Orozco | Sentenced to 3 months custody, 3 years supervised release on 9/19/24 | ||
Brauli Jalapa Rodriguez | Sentenced to 3 months custody, 3 years supervised release on 10/25/24 | ||
Obstruction 23-cr-00267 | 18 U.S.C. §§ 1519 (Destruction, Alteration, and Falsification of Records in Federal Investigations); 1512(c)(2) (Obstruction of Official Proceedings); 242 (Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law) | Timothy Manly Williams | Pleaded guilty 11/28/23, status conference 8/19/25 |
Anabolic Steroid Distribution 23-cr-00268 | 21 U.S.C. §§ 846 (Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess with Intent to Distribute Anabolic Steroids), 841(a)(1), and (b)(1)(E)(i) (Possession with Intent to Distribute Anabolic Steroids) | Daniel Harris | Pleaded guilty 9/17/24, status conference 8/19/25 |
21 U.S.C. §§ 846, 841(a)(1), and (b)(1)(E)(i) (Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess with Intent to Distribute Anabolic Steroids); 18 U.S.C.§ 1519 (Destruction, Alteration, and Falsification of Records in Federal Investigations) | Devon Wenger | Convicted at trial 4/30/25, sentencing pending | |
Civil Rights 23-cr-00269 | 18 U.S.C. §§ 241 (Conspiracy Against Rights), 242 (Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law); § 1519 (Destruction, Alteration, and Falsification of Records in Federal Investigations) | Morteza Amiri | Convicted at trial 3/14/25 on counts 2 and 5, remanded to custody pending sentencing, which is set for 6/3/25 |
18 U.S.C. §§ 241 (Conspiracy Against Rights), 242 (Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law) | Eric Rombough | Pleaded guilty 1/14/25, status conference 8/19/25 | |
18 U.S.C. §§ 241 (Conspiracy Against Rights), 242 (Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law) | Devon Wenger | Trial 7/21/25 | |
Anabolic Steroid Distribution 24-cr-00157 | 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(E)(i) (Possession with Intent to Distribute Anabolic Steroids) | Patrick Berhan | Sentenced to 30 months custody, 2 years supervised release concurrent with 23-cr-264 on 9/5/24 |
Bank Fraud 24-cr-00502 | 18 U.S.C. § 1344(1), (2) (Bank fraud) | Daniel Harris | Pleaded guilty 9/17/24, status conference 8/19/25 |
Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.