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[TGJB]

Okay, I just got into the office, after spending the day in front of a Federal Grand Jury.

Kidding. Actually, with vets, but the ones for my 16yo diabetic cat.

Anyway, I\'m a little behind the curve with this story. But I did make a couple of calls, and I predict (mostly based on what appeared in the News and Post) that this will end up being the biggest racing story of all time. This carries a lot more than industry penalties (suspensions and fines)--  tampering with a parimutuel event is a crime, and Federal time doesn\'t allow parole. They apparently have some wiretaps, and there are a lot of people who will be talking as fast as they can get the words out of their mouths.

So I\'m predicting a very big story, with ramifications all throughout the industry, including rebates. A huge ripple effect, and one possible outcome is Federal regulation. I\'m a Libertarian, but if there ever was an industry that cried out for regulation...
I feel a letter to the editor coming.

[MO]

Yep, imagine my surprise folks. Been saying for years the reason I quit betting was because of larceny.

Jerry  mentioned a ripple effect. How about this folks - this is fodder for the religious right and morons like our president who would like nothing more than to see racing banished forever along all other forms of gambling.

Indeed this is this biggest racing story of all time and couple with the NYRA indictment last year, clerk of scales supensions, past accusations of winning jockeys carrying buzzers in the Kentucky Derby (one true, one false), the BC fix-6, no All-Star Buglers at the Breeders Cup for 2 years in a row, I can\'t believe we all haven\'t quit this game.



Post Edited (01-14-05 18:06)

[Catalin]

I understand from an unimpeachable source that the FEDS have an undercover agent on the NYRA backstretch for the past 9 months.  Further this source tells me that there will be more arrests next week.  Household names...

[derby1592]

If nothing else, this scandle may do for Racing what the BALCO scandal did for baseball - force the industry to finally make the obviously needed changes they were not capable of making themselves until after the scandal.

I would imagine that there is a lot of flushing and shredding going on right about now...

Chris

[TGJB]

...and maybe a few phone calls to lawyers as well.

I have it on pretty good authority that the part that doesn\'t involve drugs is about technical violations of betting statutes involving taking bets (illegal), then pooling them, and putting them into a rebate site under one name (also illegal). Best guess is that they weren\'t passing the rebates on, and also playing games with the losses of their players, and the tax witholding. But we\'ll see.

That part won\'t mean much of anything to the game in general. But it could give leverage to shake stuff loose that is a lot more important.

[MO]

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/todaysnews/newsview.asp?recno=52192&subsec=1