Trainer Accused of Doping in 675 Harness Races

By WALT BOGDANICH

Lisa Photo

The trainer Luis Pena with one of his horses.

In what officials called one of the most sweeping and unusual enforcement actions in the history of horse racing, New York State accused a prominent horse trainer on Thursday of illegally drugging horses in 675 harness races over a 28-month period in the state.

The trainer, Luis Pena, was suspended pending a hearing later this month and faces fines of up to $25,000 per violation for administering 14 different drugs, including pain medicine and anti-inflammatory drugs, in the hours before races when those drugs cannot be used.

 

The investigation, which is continuing, could lead to the recovery of $2.5 million in prize money won with horses that regulators say were illegally drugged.

 

“This is one of, if not the most, unique and significant cases undertaken by a racing regulator, simply by the sheer number of violations uncovered,” said Ron Ochyrm, executive director of the New York State Racing and Wagering Board.

 

Beyond its scope, the enforcement action is noteworthy because the drug violations were not uncovered in postrace laboratory tests — as is customary — but rather through veterinary records. In fact, none of the cases resulted in a positive postrace test because the drug levels were not high enough.

 

“We’ve been looking at ways to ratchet up fines and deal with habitual offenders, and New York may have just given us the answer we have been looking for,” said Edward J. Martin, president of Racing Commissioners International, a trade association for racing regulators.

 

Even though the allegations involve harness racing, not its higher-profile cousin, thoroughbred racing, they come as the entire horse racing industry is in turmoil over rising calls for tougher regulation of drugs and other safety issues.

 

Pena, who was second in earnings among trainers nationally in 2011, said in an interview that he was singled out for two reasons, his success and his ethnicity. “I’ve never had a positive test ever,” said Pena, who is of Mexican heritage. “I’m the token brown boy who everyone and their mother wants to talk about.”

 

This is not the first time Pena has attracted controversy. Empire City Casino at Yonkers Raceway once barred him, then readmitted him. “He came in with his lawyer and really assured us that he was clean and was willing to do whatever he had to do to prove that,” said Tim Rooney Jr., the track’s general counsel.

      

Even before Thursday’s action, Pena could not race at three tracks: the Meadowlands in New Jersey and Vernon Downs and Tioga Downs in upstate New York. He was the Meadowlands’ leading trainer in 2010 and 2011, but was barred this year.

 

“I have zero tolerance,” said the tracks’ operator, Jeffrey Gural. “It’s private property. I’m running a business.”

 

Gural said he considered Pena “the Rick Dutrow of harness racing.” Dutrow, who trained the 2008 Kentucky Derby winner, Big Brown, has been cited for nearly 70 violations at 15 tracks in nine states, including for using powerful painkillers on horses he raced. He is contesting New York’s decision to revoke his racing license.

      

Pena kept his horses in New Jersey and also raced in New York. The states jointly reviewed the veterinary records. The investigation determined that Pena amassed 1,719 drug violations in connection with 675 races.

 

Pena’s veterinarian, Eric Kates, did not return a phone message seeking his comment.

      

Pena said his monthly veterinary bill was about $25,000 for 60 to 100 horses. Because Kates treated Pena’s horses on private property, regulators said, they did not have authority over him.

Using veterinary records alone to discipline a trainer is unusual.

 

“It’s been something that hasn’t been common practice,” said Paul Estok, executive vice president for Harness Tracks of America, a trade association. “I’ve talked to a couple of people I’ve known in racing for 50 years, and nobody can remember anything that involved this many violations at one time.”

      

Pena said the charges were partly a result of jealousy. “I’m the No. 1 trainer in the United States,” he said. “It’s racism, dude.”

Joe Drape contributed reporting.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/25/sports/trainer-luis-pena-accused-of-doping-in-675-harness-races.html?_r=0