Phil Musson is dead eight years after the government sentenced him to prison and seized all his assets.
Phillip Musson, the owner and operator of the defunct underground steroid laboratories known as Titan Pharma and CN Pharma, was found dead at his rural Little River home located south of Christchurch, New Zealand. Musson was 50 years old.
Sarah Illingworth, a Detective Senior Sergeant with the New Zealand Police, said that Musson was found by his wife sitting slumped over on his motorcycle. Foul play was not suspected. The immediate cause of death was not known although Musson was reportedly in poor health.
Musson sold steroids from the following UGLs: Titan Pharma, CN Pharma, and Phoenix Biotech.
Musson enjoyed some success selling Titan Pharma- and CN Pharma- branded anabolic steroids in the early 2010s. Police investigators documented $795,958 NZD in unexplained income between April 2010 and March 2013.
Musson’s success as a UGL operator was short-lived. Musson was targeted after the New Zealand Customs Service first intercepted a package containing steroids in November 2011. The police launched Operation Adder which ultimately intercepted another 17 packages addressed to him. Musson was arrested in May 2012.
Musson continued to import and sell steroids under the brand Phoenix Biotech while he was on bail. The decision was consistent with Musson’s recklessness as a steroid dealer. He reportedly aggressively marketed and sold steroids to potential customers. These strategies included soliciting sales by sending mass bulk text message to potential customers.
In 2014, Musson was sentenced to four years and five months in prison after pleading guilty to 182 violations of the New Zealand Medicines Act. While he was in prison, the government seized practically everything he owned under the NZ Criminal Proceeds Recovery Act.
The asset forfeiture amounted to several hundred thousand dollars in assets including his motorcycle, vehicle, bars of gold and silver, and cash. Most notably, the government seized Musson’s family home in Bishopdale. The seizure left his wife and mother-in-law homeless.
Musson and his family had since rented and live on the rural property in Little River. His only reported recent source of income was from selling firewood at the time of his death. However, police are investigating the possibility that he was operating a methamphetamine lab on the property.