Ex gym owner charged in drug sales seeking plea deal

Ex gym owner charged in drug sales seeking plea deal.

Prosecutors and the defense lawyer for a former local gym owner who is charged with selling drugs are discussing a possible plea deal to avoid a trial scheduled for next month.

A pretrial hearing that was scheduled for Thursday to determine what evidence would be admissible at the trial of Scott R. Rabine has been canceled amid discussions about a plea deal. Rabine was arrested last summer for allegedly selling steroids and prescription painkillers from his then-gym, Spartan Fitness in Glens Falls.

Washington County District Attorney Tony Jordan, who is handling the case as a special prosecutor, acknowledged there have been recent discussions about a resolution to the charges before trial.

Jordan would not discuss what offer has been made in the case, but said a state prison sentence “in the range” of 10 years was being proposed.

“I am reluctant to get into specifics when we are this close to getting the case resolved,” he said.

Rabine’s lawyer, E. Stewart Jones, did not return a phone call for comment Tuesday or Wednesday.

Rabine, 44, of Fort Edward, faces a 10-count felony indictment that accuses him of five drug sales, an attempted sale, illegal possession of a shotgun and public assistance fraud.

Court records filed recently as prosecutors prepare for trial outline exactly how State Police and Glens Falls Police came to focus on Rabine and his gym.

Rabine had been on local police agencies’ radar for several years, authorities said. The court documents show Glens Falls Police received a tip on March 10 that Rabine was selling steroids and drugs from the gym, and that State Police were asked to assist in the investigation.

State Police Special Investigations Unit had two undercover investigators buy $175 memberships to the gym in early April, and by May 22 one of them had worked out an agreement to buy $400 worth of anabolic steroids from Rabine, court records show.

The investigators were then able to buy quantities of between 13 and 134 oxycodone pills and two vials of anabolic androgenic steroids between June 11 and July 16, according to court records. Rabine allegedly received between $300 and $3,700 for each of the sales. He was arrested July 17.

All of the sales were videorecorded and audio recorded, court records show. The drug charges alone could result in up to 62 years in state prison if sentences were imposed consecutively.

The documents show Rabine was collecting Medicaid through false claims related to income, and got the painkillers he sold through Medicaid claims.

Police allege he deposited $128,713 in his bank account in 2013, and withdrawals for $21,831 were made that year at Saratoga Casino and Raceway alone, the records show.

Rabine, who is free on bail pending further court action, has a prior felony conviction that requires he serve a state prison term for any subsequent felony conviction within 10 years. He served more than 4 months in jail before being released on bail Nov. 26.

Trial is scheduled to start March 12 before Warren County Judge John Hall if no plea deal is reached.