A search warrant executed at a house in the 3900 block of Tolmas Drive in Metairie turned up what Jefferson Parish Sheriff Joseph Lopinto called the largest steroid-related drug manufacturing operation he has encountered in his entire law enforcement career. Detectives who searched the home on August 24 recovered vials of anabolic steroids, oral anabolic compounds, ketamine, MDMA, anabolic steroid powder, and equipment used to manufacture and package drugs, along with several firearms, 3D-printed guns, and a 3D-printed silencer.
Sheriff Lopinto estimated the narcotics and illicit compounds seized from the residence had a street value exceeding $1 million, according to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office, which posted details of the investigation to Facebook. As reported by WWL-TV, Lopinto said he could not recall handling a comparable steroid-level case during his career, calling the scale of the Metairie find extraordinary even by his own standards.
Fake Weight-Loss Drugs Among the Seized Materials
Among the items pulled from the home were substances packaged to resemble GLP-1 weight-loss medications, the type of injectable drugs currently in high demand nationwide. The station's report notes that Lopinto used the discovery to warn residents that buyers turning to unregulated black-market sources have no way of knowing what chemicals they are actually injecting into their bodies.
Investigators believe 41-year-old Anthony Caruso ran a sophisticated setup inside the house, importing raw powdered chemicals, mixing them with liquid solvents, and packaging the results into injectable vials and oral compounds meant for distribution. Local reporting has described the property as resembling a Breaking Bad style home lab, though that comparison plays only a minor role in a case built primarily around the seized quantities of narcotics, weapons, and equipment.
A Long List of Charges, With More Possibly Coming
Caruso was booked on charges that include creation of a clandestine lab, possession with intent to distribute a Schedule III substance, possession of a Schedule I substance, possession of a Schedule III substance, possessing a legend drug without a prescription, use of a firearm in connection with a controlled dangerous substance offense, felon carrying an illegal weapon, possession of an illegal or unregistered weapon, and resisting police by force or violence, per the sheriff's office. Sheriff Lopinto confirmed that Caruso is a convicted felon with a prior criminal history involving drug-related offenses, a record that underpins the felony weapons charges filed against him.
Under Louisiana law, La. R.S. 40:983 makes creating or operating a clandestine lab for manufacturing controlled dangerous substances punishable by five to fifteen years in state prison at hard labor and fines of up to $25,000, according to Louisiana's state legislature. Law enforcement officials have signaled that federal agencies could still get involved, and that additional weapons charges are anticipated because of the untraceable 3D-printed firearms and silencer recovered from the house.
Part of a Wider Pattern in Jefferson Parish
The Tolmas Drive bust follows other recent residential drug cases in Metairie. Back in June, Hoodline reported that JPSO detectives executed a separate narcotics warrant in the city that led to the arrest of a local chef on fentanyl manufacturing and distribution charges. That same month, federal agents and state police raided another Metairie home after tracking international shipments of illegal prescription pills, a case in which the suspect reportedly tried to toss 2,000 tablets out a window.
Whether federal prosecutors ultimately take over the Caruso case remains an open question, as does the exact chemical makeup of the compounds seized from the Tolmas Drive residence, which authorities have not yet detailed pending further testing. The 3900 block of Tolmas Drive sits in a quiet residential corridor near West Esplanade Avenue, a major East Bank thoroughfare, underscoring how the operation was tucked into an otherwise ordinary suburban neighborhood.
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