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Racehorse Trainer Faces Prison Term For Doping Scheme 

The racehorse trainer, Jorge Navarro is looking at a federal prison time of over five years. He admitted his part in a nationwide horse doping scheme. Navarro pleaded guilty as charged. On 11th August, according to a statement issued by the US Justice Department. The doping scheme had been successfully ongoing for a number of years, in part, thanks to the popularity of horse racing with the paying punters and public. Navarro also had an accomplice, a veterinarian called Kristian Rhein, who helped distribute the non-FDA approved drugs. They had been previously misbranded to hide the fact that the contents had been altered. 

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A Lot Of Prize Money

Over the course of the last five years, all of Navarro horses experienced huge wins all over the world. The trainer himself was able to pocket around $34.5 million of those winnings. They discovered that this was how to win the jackpot. In January 2020, a famous and fast racehorse called XY Jet died of a heart attack. This was the horse that had famously won the Golden Shaheen in Dubai, as well as a number of other prestigious wins. Navarro was described by the Manhattan US District Attorney, Audrey Strauss, as “a reckless fraudster whose veneer of success relied on the systematic abuse of animals under his control.” Navaro will be sentenced later this year in December and can expect to receive a five-year stretch inside. He was also ordered to pay $25.9 million in restitution.

A Racehorse Doping Mastermind

doping

Looking at the DOJ statement, we can see that an investigation into a global racehorse doping scheme has been ongoing for some time. The investigators have been examining veterinarians, trainers and the companies which distribute performance-enhancing drugs. In fact, since March of 2020, the Fed has charged 31 persons with related crimes. it’s certainly a great way to increase your jackpot winning chances. Essentially, the motivating factor was simply one of greed. The idea was to grab as much prize money as possible from horse races all over the world. As Navarro said in court, “I was the organizer for a criminal activity that involved five or more participants,” he commented. “I abused a position of trust as I was a licensed horse trainer and the horses were in my custody at the time.”

Mis-Labelling Drugs  

As the mastermind, Navarro was responsible for the importation and mislabelling of drugs. Both for both his own stables as well as for distribution to other trainers around the country. In order to remain under the radar, he worked in coordination with others to obscure his true intentions to avoid detection. The most profitable horse was, in fact, XY Jet. During the court hearing, Navarro admitted to administering a performance enhancement drug to the racehorse. This was before the race at Gulfstream Park on Feb 13, 2019, and in the Dubai Golden Shaheen in March 2019. They referred to the actual drug as “the monkey.” Looking through the racing industry database we can see that XY Jet earned around $3 million before his untimely death in 2020.

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Don’t Trust The Vet

The vet Kristian Rhein was also to plead guilty for his participation in the scheme. He admitted to distributing and administering performance-enhancing drugs to horses both in the USA and abroad. It turns out that Rhein also assisted in the doping of the 2019 Kentucky Derby winner Maximum Security. Of the nine races finished that year, there were six first places and one second. Of course, this would have been a great result if you were a betting an. Using 22Bet Sportbook would have guaranteed some big payouts. Another trainer was also involved with this horse. Jason Servis also pleaded guilty to drugging a racehorse in order to improve its performance.

The Effects of Doping On A Racehorse

horse races

Of the drugs that Rhein distributed, one was Clenbuterol and the other, SGF-1000. In June 2019, Maximum Security tested positive for the drug SGF-1000 after a race in New Jersey. This performance-enhancing drug promotes endurance, greater stamina and also lowers the heart rate. In some ways, doping is one of the best jackpot winning strategies. If you consider the well-known races that have fallen under the influence of drugs, then it’s easy to see that the whole horse racing industry has some huge problems starting from the foundations upwards. 

Doping Is A Constant in US Horse Racing

If a race like the Kentucky Derby, probably one of the most famous horse races in the entire world, has a problem with doping, then there’s little hope. The previous winner, Medina Spirit was found to be on steroids after a couple of tests by the race organisers. As a result, the racetrack, Churchill Downs suspended the trainer, Bob Baffert for a couple of years. In the light of what’s going on, with all the financial losses from punters, this represents nothing, barely a slap on the wrist. It makes a complete mockery of US horse racing

No One Cares About The Racehorses 

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Probably by far, the saddest factor in this whole sorry tale is that trainers, riders, vets and owners don’t give two hoots about the actual racehorse in their care. When they claim a horse, they don’t even think about the animals suffering or their shortened life span. The constant injuries from having to perform when they are already suffering from injuries, which these drugs suppress. Greed is king. It’ll be a good thing if Navarro gets five years. But his example will not stop others from doing as he did. Simply because the rewards outweigh the risks to such a huge degree.

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