Our Voices: Drug Convictions Should Send Clear Message

Cameras are not allowed in New York City's federal courts. If they were, horse racing could have a few new poster boys—the kind to act as a deterrent, not an inspiration. In the past month, trainer Jorge Navarro, veterinarian Dr. Kristian Rhein, and drug distributor Michael Kegley Jr. all appeared before United States District Court Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil in Manhattan's Southern District of New York courthouse for their roles in a race doping scheme that involved adulterated and misbranded performance-enhancing drugs. They were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 30 months to five years. For the good of the entire horse racing industry, current images of those individuals should be plastered on racetracks and industry websites for all to see—as a reminder of how the pursuit of a winner's circle photo is not worth the risk of a mug shot. Anyone else who is engaging in or contemplating the use of performing-enhancing drugs like those three convicted felons could then get a chill down their spine at the sight of the somber faces of Navarro, Rhein, and Kegley coming face-to-face with prison life. Perhaps those who are still trying to cheat the system would wonder if that could be them in another year or so. "I've been in this sport in one manner or another since 1983 and there were moments when I never thought all of this would be possible, but here we are," said James Gagliano, president and COO of The Jockey Club. "Listening to the soliloquies from Navarro, Rhein, and Kegley, and hearing what they admitted to and listening to the judge deliver justice by taking away years of someone's life, I hope people think about it. This is not like other sports where there's just a fine. This is no longer business as usual. There are severe consequences these individuals' families are going to feel for generations." Though they were once on top of the racing world and mocked those who questioned their over-the-top success, when they faced the judge in federal court and awaited their fate their bravado had been washed away as they humbly stood and repented of their crimes. Tears could be seen in the eyes of their loved ones and friends as the sentences were announced and that devastating moment arrived when any hope of avoiding jail time disappeared. Though words were not spoken after the announcement of the sentences, there's little doubt each convicted felon was shattered as they came to grips with the ill-advised decisions that landed them a serious stretch of time behind bars. Each addressed the court and said they were sorry for their deeds and presented letters from supporters saying they were good human beings and worthy of compassion from Judge Vyskocil. But none of that swayed her. She pointed out how these crimes were not momentary lapses of judgment, but prolonged schemes that imperiled the life of equine athletes and cheated bettors and rival owners, trainers, and jockeys out of money for several years. She applied the full measure of the sentences with no remorse. The three individuals were also socked with enormous fines and orders for forfeiture and restitution, not to mention massive legal bills. On the day he was sentenced, Rhein handed the court a check for $671,800 before his life was turned upside down. Two years ago at this time, he was a successful veterinarian, living a fashionable lifestyle in an expensive Garden City, N.Y., home. Today he faces 36 months behind bars in an infamous orange jumpsuit—and an uncertain future once he's freed. Those are the pictures that should resonate with anyone still involved in cheating and PEDs. They need to be reminded that overwhelming greed and a misguided quest for fame, riches, and winner's circle photos could lead to a mug shot at police headquarters. For next time, it could be them, because if anyone thinks this was just a one-time dog and pony show, they are sadly mistaken about the risks they are taking. What's of paramount importance here is that the case is being heard in federal court. Federal prosecutors are not local district attorneys who run for re-election and in some instances have little interest in trying some criminals for certain crimes that they do not deem worthy of their time and effort. Federal attorneys and agencies such as the FBI meticulously build cases, sometimes with wiretaps and surveillance, that are extremely difficult to find fault in and overturn. In this case, the defendants' own words convicted them through wiretaps of their conversations. Unlike local courts, which can be loath to put people behind bars for long amounts of time, federal prison terms do not include parole, and time off for good behavior is virtually non-existent. The best way to reduce your time behind bars? Spill the beans on some other criminal that the feds would love to convict. Given that the indictments of Navarro, fellow trainer and co-conspirator Jason Servis, and more than two dozen others took place March 9, 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic began to grip the nation, the passing of 22 months' worth of time may have some of the game's other cheaters believing the coast is clear and that this was just a one-shot raid. But sources indicate there will be a second round of indictments, possibly by the summer, and for the mountain of evidence against the current defendants there will be even more for the second group to refute. Rest assured the current defendants, most of whom have submitted guilty pleas, have turned state evidence and have provided information that will lead to other arrests and convictions in the future. In particular, original defendants Gregory Skelton, Ross Cohen, Nick Surick, Chris Marino, and Henry Argueta (Servis' former assistant) were not named in the superseding indictment. While it's unknown why that happened, it generally means those people agreed to help the government build a case. Against whom? Possibly against the current defendants. Maybe against the next set. Perhaps the ones after that. Time will tell. Yet if anyone worked with those individuals to sell, buy, or use illegal drugs, there should be some panic over the likelihood that extra pairs of ears were listening to their conversations. One would hope than any trainer, veterinarian, or drug supplier would be scared straight by what could happen to them, and the same applies to owners. Though no major Thoroughbred owners were involved in this indictments, there was evidence in it that should serve as a wake-up call to owners. Realistically, it's unfair to assume that every trainer with an above-average winning percentage cheats. And with the drugs in the Navarro/Servis case being misbranded and listed as permissible drugs in bills, plausible deniability comes into play. Remember, people are innocent until proven guilty, regardless of what millions of people on social media believe (except, of course, when it involves them). Yet in some cases that plausible deniability is a ruse, as was revealed during this case. When Navarro submitted his guilty plea, he confirmed that he and an unidentified owner of the racehorse Nanoosh agreed to continue administering PEDs to that horse in order to improve Nanoosh's racing performance. Nanoosh made his final three starts for Navarro in 2019 for owners Rockingham Ranch, Zayat Stables, and David Bernsen. Evidence in the indictment includes a conversation between what was described as the operators of a California-based stable that owned the horse following a ninth and sixth in its first two starts for Navarro which made it clear the use of PEDs was not a mystery to them. A passage in the federal indictment included this information: "On or about May 29, 2019, Navarro held a conference call with the operators of a racing stable in California, for whom Navarro is a trainer, during which they discussed a series of poor performances by Nanoosh, a racehorse trained by Navarro. During the call, one of the operators questioned whether Navarro was 'giving them (that operator's racehorses) all the shit,' later asking, 'Is this horse jacked out? Is he on (expletive) pills or what or are we just (expletive)ing,' to which Navarro responded, 'Everything … he gets everything.' Individual-1 then cut the discussion short, stating: 'You don't have to tell me on the phone.'" While the location of the stable is potentially telling, the name of the stable operator was redacted in the indictment. Yet once the case ends, a federal freedom of information request could unmask that shady individual for all to see. Hopefully, long before that happens, the feds will have already obtained a court order to tap that person's phones and construct a case that will possibly have tentacles that ensnare other trainers, vets, and suppliers. Given that most owners are successful business people, all of that should give them a reason to stop and think about who is caring for their horses and whether a few wins are worth a few years in prison. For all the claims of plausible deniability, all it takes for them to lose everything they have acquired in life is a loquacious trainer or vet and words spoken when they incorrectly thought no one else was listening. Yes, these days people in horse racing never know who is listening to a conversation and who may knock on their door in the early morning hours with an arrest warrant with their name on it. If that doesn't scare someone with a lot to lose into abiding by the rules, then nothing will. Sadly, as much as the impending launch of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority in July paints an optimistic picture about starting to eliminate the cheaters, more than that and the threat of federal prosecution is needed. Some difficult waters with HISA have surfaced through a failure to reach an agreement with USADA, and at some point the federal government will turn its attention toward more dangerous and hardened criminals than the ones permeating racetracks. That's why racetracks and state regulators need to seize on this moment to launch more vigorous efforts to eliminate the cheaters from their venues. They have to stop paying lip service to cleaning up the sport and bring in reputable and effective security companies such as 5 Stones intelligence, which The Jockey Club employs and which played a crucial role in generating the Navarro/Servis indictments. An occasional overage, as opposed to serial violations, is one thing. There are indeed times when that happens through an innocent mistake or accidental contamination, and there should be lesser penalties in those instances. But falsifying potentially dangerous drugs and brazenly injecting them into a horse to improve its speed or block pain is something else. It's a federal crime, and it's time for people to stop saying they know who is cheating and produce evidence proving it so action can be taken. For all of the good and caring people in the sport, the last 22 months have been a difficult time with a few of the proverbial bad apples providing a black eye to many. It's time for that to change—and a picture, be it an imagined image from a courtroom or a mug shot, can be worth much more than a thousand words toward that hope.