I’m sure the Wests have also had a few discussions with Coolmore today.
As far as Jason’s side of it, the FBI has records where he himself admits using illegal drugs on the horse and then asking the vet to falsify medication records. I’m not sure how many sides to that there are.
Those were my thoughts exactly. :lol: I don’t think he has a “side” other than what he’s said and done.
I sincerely doubt they give two f***s. Endurance. Jamal Khashoggi. Princess Haya and some Royal daughters. There’s no shortage of examples when it comes to the various ruling families in the middle East.
I did not mean to imply they cared about the horses, just that they cared about profits, business interests and anybody who could embarrass them. Suspect they treat the horses better then their wives. Which is quite a low bar to set.
This is the darkest day that i can think of since I have been involved in horse racing but it’s a day I think everyone in the racing industry should support. Racing is at a crossroads and getting rid of anyone and everyone involved in this sort of activity forever is the only chance for survival we have. I have to admit it would have been humorous if the West’s had been successful at getting Max declared the Derby winner only to be stripped of it yet again but that definitely isn’t in anyone’s interest.
In case you missed it, this article claims Servis is in custody in NY. Also anyone think this has anything to do with the two big retirements that were just announced in NY? I know they weren’t named but still, timing seems suspect.
Looking back at the comments the trainer made after the death of one of his horses… it is repulsive. https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/237813/top-sprinter-x-y-jet-dies-from-heart-attack
Well, not like West’s have day to day contact with horses or trainer and imagine they have a spokesperson, probably a lawyer., That’s what their racing manger is for, maybe they are just naive or sticking their heads in the sand. Imagine other owners aren’t going to speak up until they are sure their trainer won’t be named later or maybe they are sure they will be named and they’ll look dumb…
If the Feds were smart, they would have arrested all named in the indictment this morning before the press release, that is usually what they do with multiple arrests resulting from the same sting or undercover operation. That way they can’t communicate with each other or skip.
Interesting to read that NYRA took custody of all the horses in the indicted trainers Belmont barns ( there was another lesser known trainer in there). They will be releasing them to whoever their ownership directs in the next day or two. Not a bad idea, Miss a couple of days training but can hand walk and it looks like Aqueduct and Gukfstream aren’t going to let any of them race until the weekend anyway.
Also interesting they quoted a racing manager representing a group of owners saying he had carefully reviewed the indictment and even knowing there are two sides to any story, is moving all client horses from Servis as soon as they are released without even calling the owners. That’s pretty bad sounding.
Isn’t that nice of them! Because, after all, they’ve gotten what they wanted from the horse…their partner may be more circumspect.
There is no way this happened without the authority who brought it (do we know for sure who that is?) nailing the coffin shut.
I do realize that we are all innocent until proven otherwise, but when it comes to treatment of animals, you flinch, and I am more than done with you.
So they are “waiting patiently” until their trainer gets out of custody to let them what’s happening? I hope it’s a long wait. :rolleyes:
They have a very strange response to this news. Very odd. I hope it’s a long wait as well.
I have a feeling the people who have been indicted will be spending some serious time in prison, but they’ll make bail first.
A few additional comments… from an article on BH.
The horses in the Belmont Park barns of Servis and trainer Michael Tannuzzo, who was also indicted, are currently under the care the New York Racing Association, according to NYRA spokesperson Pat McKenna.
“All of the horses in the affected barns are being properly cared for and actively monitored by the NYRA Safety and Integrity team,” McKenna said.
Lombardi said he was told by NYRA officials that his horses would not be allowed to train March 10, but will be cleared to move to other barns shortly.
“The horses can be walked,” Lombardi said. “Then as soon as all of the horses are taken care of and identified in terms of who they are and who they belong to, I was told they can be moved as early as (Tuesday) afternoon or maybe Wednesday. It’s comforting to know NYRA is on top of it and looking out for the best interests of the horses.”
Lombardi’s ‘big name’ horse ATM is Firenze Fire. Currently Firenze Fire is targeting the Carter Handicap (G1) on April 4 but unclear at this time if he’ll run or not (and definitely with a new trainer).
At Gulfstream Park, where cards for March 11-13 have been drawn, officials said the 10 horses Navarro has entered for those days, along with Servis’ two, would be scratched.
From all indications it is unlikely the three horses Servis entered on Friday’s card at Aqueduct would be allowed to race.
If I, as an owner, had horses with either Servis or Navarro, I would have my horses removed as soon as I could. I get the ‘innocent until proven guilty’ but for me, an indictment of this magnitude would make the decision easy.
Front and center on CNN another article from which I extracted this (could not find this anywhere else but usually CNN does their background research and they had all day on this one…)
This made me just about vomit 
One horse trainer is accused of working with someone else to “quietly dispose of the bodies of dead horses,” rather than report those horses’ deaths to authorities, Berman said at the news conference.
“You know how many fking horses he (Navarro) fking killed and broke down that I made disappear … You know how much trouble he could get in … if they found out … the six horses we killed?” said one co-conspirator on a call that was intercepted by authorities, according to one of the indictments.
Prosecutors did not disclose a total number of horses that were believed to have been killed as part of the scheme.
Really gotta wonder if X Y Jet’s ‘heart attack’ was EPO related.
NB, EPO is the same drug that many pro bicyclists, including Lance Armstrong, have been busted for. It’s not a ‘new’ thing.
Seeing Navarro’s name at the top of the indictment made my day (week, month…)
He was one of the butchers who had my horse in the last few months of his career, before I claimed him out of his last start.
The guy who claimed him off of Navarro really should be locked up for the further abuse the horse suffered. Whatever the last trainer (who, like Navarro, has been a leading trainer at Gulfstream) did to his ankle was impressive.
I hope lots of heads roll, trainers are banned for life, and vets lose their licenses.
Apparently there is a well equipped training center near Gulfstream, something with Palm in the name, Many trainers base their horses there and just use the track stall for those racing or hauling over to work in the mornings. Not thing wrong with that, fact it makes sense if there’s one nearby any track, especially one without enough stalls or room for more. Always thought in a win win for track and trainers.
However…training center is private property. Dead horse at the track will probably attract official attention and generate at least a routine report ( I should think anyway) plus be hard to hide from anybody on the backside. No oversight at all at training centers, fewer people around. If one wanted to dispose of underperforming horses, they could have their colics, heart attacks or break a leg in a stall accident at the training center. Navarro does work out of that training center. So does a French trainer who has had some past,issues. He just won a major Derby prep in spectacular, upset fashion with a huge payout to the few bettors who picked him. He is not named here, maybe he learned his lesson…yeah… Suspect many if not most horses down there are not stabled at the track the whole meet. But just sayin…if one wanted to, that would be the place…
What gets me here is if it’s at the track, it’s in the show barns. Probably doesn’t test because it’s long out of the system, unlike the side effects.
According to that CNN article, the investigation went on for 2 years and they stumbled upon what was going on while investigating another matter.
But they did sort of get one thing wrong, how they profit from horses winnings. Yeah, big races with big purses. But most if any trainers horses don’t even run in those and the purse money not so great in midweek MSW races and such. It’s the potential to make a killing at the betting windows or with a bookie. Trainers can’t bet (publicly) but somebody can do it for them or they can wager with a bookie but, even better, tip off a gambler about a real long shot due for a spectacular upset for a cut of a payout that’s more then any non graded stakes purse. The fix is in and quite lucrative for participants. It’s all about the staggering amount of money generated by Pari Mutual, private and illegal betting.
cant really put the blame back on the owners. they likely had no clue this was ever going on with their horses. Servis and the like kept it hidden because it boosted their wins and win statistics therefore adding more customers to their stable. These people entrusted their horses to trainers who they thought were giving them the best care and training but in the end they were shooting them up in the stalls on the backside and praying they didn’t drop dead on the track everyday.
Its no surprise that Jorge was caught in this. everyone knew how dirty dirty he was. I hope they throw the book at him. …XY Jet… what a sad state of affairs.
The good news is that the NYRA is caring for the horses in NY, walking them daily. and they should be cleared shortly to move to other barns.
Honestly, I think we have an abundance of examples that show various (primarily male) members of the various royal families believe they are so far above the law, that they are sure their actions will not impact profits. And so far they have not been proven wrong.
Also that training center is extremely busy, but more importantly, there’s a reason why we called life at the training center “as the shedrow turns” (dating myself!). EVERYONE knows EVERYTHING. Also, fun fact, that’s where Helen Brach was last headed if I recall correctly.
What are the two big retirements that were just announced in NY?
West just announced that Maximum Security is going to Bob Baffert.
If the owners didn’t know it’s because they didn’t want to know. Period.
Hmmmm, eerily reminiscent of the insurance fraud killings investigation. They had tapped Donna Brown’s fathers phone for something else altogether, when they overhead the plan to kill Streetwise for the insurance money
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