Belgian police raided three houses in Herentals last week in connection with an investigation into medical malpractice with a possible doping element.
As Het Nieuwsblad reports, Kristof Aerts of the Antwerp public prosecutor's office said that investigators noted "atypical prescribing behavior" from a Herentals doctor, and that that behavior could have been related to doping as well. Wielerflits reports that the doctor, who operates a general practice, was formerly connected with a professional cycling team.
Herentals, a small city east of Antwerp, is itself closely connected to cycling as the home of a hospital that frequently treats cyclists injured while training or racing in Classics country.
Federal Judicial Police personnel searched the home of the doctor and also two other houses in the area, and items collected in those searches will now be analyzed.
At present, the identity of the doctor and the team with which the doctor used to be connected have not been released, and all told, it is far too early to say whether the investigation and the raids are likely to lead to any bombshell revelations in the coming weeks. Despite the potential doping element of the inquiry itself, the reported past connection between the doctor and a pro team, and the location of the raids, the patients of the doctor's practice are apparently not subject to the investigation.
That could change, but for now, it remains to be seen whether the investigation will produce any further cycling-related headlines.
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