Top Irish trainer facing drugs charges

Aldaniti

Aldaniti

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Who do we think this is then?

From the RP

A LEADING Irish jumps trainer is due to appear before Carrick-on-Suir district court on Thursday charged with possession of prohibited animal remedies.
A search of the trainer's yard by the department of agriculture is alleged to have found the animal remedies and a spokesman for the department has confirmed that a hearing will take place this week, watched closely by the Turf Club.
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Denis Egan: "we will be paying close attention to what happens"
PICTURE: Getty Images
"The department of agriculture, food and the marine confirms that a hearing is scheduled for Carrick-on-Suir district court on Thursday, February 20," the spokesman said.
"Charges are being brought under the Animal Remedies legislation alleging offences relating to possession of animal remedies."
Turf Club chief executive Denis Egan added: "The case involves banned animal remedies. We don’t know yet the precise nature of these products. But we will be paying close attention to what happens."
The department of agriculture's statement went on to state the potential seriousness of the charges.
"A person who commits one of the offences above is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding €5,000 or to a term of imprisonment not exceeding six months or to both."
 
Completely unrelated but here is a list of trainers in Carrick-On-Suir:

Fenton, Philip Glenbower Stables, Garryduff, South Lodge, Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary, Ireland
Hourigan, G T South Lodge, Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary, Ireland
Palussiere, Matthieu Newtown, Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary, Ireland
Quirk, Gerard Cregg Cottage, Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary, Ireland
 
It is very odd considering that the trainer has apparently been charged and is to appear in court that his name cannot be reported . Irish criminal procedure evidently has stricter reporting restrictions than we seem to nowadays .
 
Ardross said:
It is very odd considering that the trainer has apparently been charged and is to appear in court that his name cannot be reported . Irish criminal procedure evidently has stricter reporting restrictions than we seem to nowadays .
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This is unusual. I don't understand it, unless the charges are imminent and not yet laid.
 
The fact the Department of Agriculture is taking the case suggests to me it could be linked to this case.

Richard Forristal– 15 January 2014
TURF CLUB chief executive Denis Egan has reiterated that there is "no evidence steroids are being used" in Irish racing circles, though he also conceded that the regulatory body has not gained access to a list of licenced trainers that was found during Customs' October raid on a Carlow premises.


At a sitting of Carlow District Court in October, John Hughes, a retired Department of Agriculture veterinary inspector, pleaded guilty to five counts of possession of banned animal substances, including the anabolic steroid Nitrotain.

The case was subsequently dismissed "on its merits" after Hughes made a donation of €10,000 to Kilkenny Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and agreed to pay court costs of €3,000 as well as witness costs of €100.

SWOOP
During the swoop on Hughes' premises by a Customs special investigation unit and gardai in February 2012, a list of trainers' names and contact details was seized by investigators, but the Turf Club's attempts to ascertain the potentially inflammatory inventory have so far been unsuccessful.

"Obviously, we would like to get that list of names, but we haven't yet," Egan admitted yesterday.
"We are not at the stage where we can't get it. It is important, but there are procedures to be gone through to obtain information and we're in the process of going through those at the moment."

Following the raid, which came on the back of high-profile instances of anabolic steroid use that had rocked the racing scene in England, the Turf Club increased its random stable inspections. Some of the biggest jumps yards in the country were subject to wholesale testing unannounced.
"All the additional tests we did in training came back negative," Egan revealed. "We carried out 189 tests over a period of one week in October and they were all negative. Obviously, we are pleased all the samples have been negative, but it's just a picture in time.

"What I've always said is we have no evidence that steroids are being used, but when you see instances like where there were banned substances found in the Carlow case, you obviously have to be concerned."

Nitrotain, which is designed to improve horses' muscle mass, strength and stamina, was one of the substances at the centre of the Mahmood Al Zarooni find in Newmarket last year.
Hughes' haul reportedly consisted of a quantity sufficient to administer up to 1,500 doses. The drug has an unusually short withdrawal period of 48 hours, meaning that a horse will test negative for it just two days after administration.

This can make detection difficult, because while every race winner is tested in this country, the benefits of the steroid can last for much longer.
As such, the random in-training tests give the Turf Club a chance of identifying any illicit drug use. However, the regulator is currently hamstrung by its inability to test horses that are returned out-of-training in between periods of training, as it has no authority over unlicensed stables.
"We are working on putting a pro- cedure in place so that we have access to all horses at all times once they are returned in training," Egan explained.

SYSTEM
"It is at a very preliminary stage, but we have to set out exactly how we are going to try and do it. Once the system is set up we have to know where horses are at all times and ensure we have access to them.
"Some of them may not be in licenced premises, so we need to make sure that there is a protocol and procedures in place."

The Turf Club's integrity budget, which is funded by Horse Racing Ireland, had been slashed by 23pc over five years up to 2013. In response to last year's developments, though, it has received a cash boost of €167,000 for 2014 that is to be ring-fenced for equine forensic testing.
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Pat Hughes was mentioned because he happens to be John Hughes's brother, but I haven't seen him being named for any other reason.
 
Grey said:
Pat Hughes was mentioned because he happens to be John Hughes's brother, but I haven't seen him being named for any other reason.
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He has also been charged with possession of unauthorised animal remedies, last I heard the case had been adjourned for the third time.
 
Thanks, I missed that.




A google search reveals nothing, mind you.
 
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I'm hoping it's not a particular trainer who has received great recognition lately for bringing two stable stars back from long absences. Irish racing doesn't need that
 
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