Happy Sunrise

Claim race horses drugged to win in attempt to frame trainer LUZ ZUNIGA/MARTIN DE RUYTER/STUFF Billy Badger, seen here winning the Nelson Pine Industries Winter Cup in Nelson last year, was one of three horses from stables operated by Robert Dunn that were drugged with performance enhancing drugs, including caffeine. Horses from one of New Zealand's leading harness racing stables must have been deliberately doped by an outside party, an appeal hearing in Auckland has heard. The claims emerged during an appeal into a $14,000 fine handed down to leading trainer Robert Dunn and his son John, after three of their horses returned positive drug tests for caffeine, at Nelson, last June. Robert Dunn, who operates the country's second most successful stable behind only the Mark Purdon - Natalie Rasmussen juggernaut, is adamant his trio was deliberately spiked with a powerful cocktail of easily detectable drugs to frame him. It is believed to be the country's first case of someone nobbling horses to win, not lose – if any of the horses won, post-race tests would inevitably reveal they had been doped and their trainer would be in the gun. DON SCOTT Robert Dunn, left, and son John were fined $14,000 after three horses returned positive drug tests But Dunn said the opportunity to prove foul play was lost when the Racing Integrity Unit stumbled in its investigation. At the centre of the claims is an incriminating phone call to a fellow Canterbury trainer informing him that the Dunn stable had three positive swabs coming from the two-day meeting. READ MORE: * Positive tests for caffeine see top harness racing stable cop $14,000 in fines * Harness stable under investigation, hefty penalties follow greyhound track brawl The caller, a former Dunn stable employee whose name was suppressed by appeal tribunal chairman Murray McKechnie, somehow knew that Rishi, Hayden's Meddle and Billy Badger, who won five races between them at the two-day meeting, would test positive even before officials knew of the breaches. Affidavits obtained by Dunn's private detective from the person called, and his father, pinned the date of the call down to June 18, just seven days after the meeting. Given the racing laboratory did not declare the presence of caffeine in the samples until July 4 and did not confirm it until July 6 – meaning the RIU did not even know the result – it was damning evidence. How could this person have known of the impending positives unless he had been involved in the nobbling or knew who was responsible? Dunn's counsel Paul Dale, who provided the RIU with this crucial information in October, and also alerted police, told the appeal tribunal he would have expected the RIU's first duty would be to confirm the date of the telephone call, which would have elevated the nobbling claim from suspicion to fact. But during its nine-month probe, racing's policing body never sought the telephone records of the man or the person he called. Instead the RIU interviewed the man who, represented by lawyer Murray Branch, was less than co-operative and declined to answer a number of questions. A senior Christchurch detective engaged by the RIU to review the case never quizzed the man or the person he called about the date and could not be persuaded by Dale of the importance of this discovery. "Yet here was an allegation of very serious criminal conduct," Dale told the tribunal. Chris Lange, appearing for the RIU, said it did not have the power to seek telephone records, but Dale told how he had recited to the detective sections of the Crimes Act that allowed for it. Dale followed up with the RIU in December but eventually was forced to file himself in the High Court for third-party discovery of the phone records. He wrote to Vodafone to get the records but after a lengthy delay, Vodafone replied that it no longer had them as six months had elapsed. Lange described as speculative the fact that further evidence may have strengthened the argument that a third party was responsible. The committee took into account that possibility by not ruling it out completely, Lange submitted, but noted that the CIB detective's review found the RIU's investigation to be "detailed, thorough and robust". Dale submitted that had the RIU more fully investigated the telephone call, and the caller been questioned in a formal hearing, motive might have been established. The Dunn camp has its own suspicions about why they were targeted but is adamant that – based on the excretion time of caffeine – the horses were doped at their stables at least 48 hours before they raced and before they travelled north. Lay advocate Leo Molloy, who acted for Dunn at the original hearing in March, says whoever was responsible knew what they were doing. The horses were hit with a powerful cocktail – caffeine, a stimulant, and phenylbutazone, a potent analgesic, designed to make them run faster and feel less pain. Both were high profile, easily detectable drugs. Rishi, Hayden's Meddle and Billy Badger were all found to have "bute" in their systems, but only one horse was marginally over the threshold and within the margin of error. Molloy, who negotiated for no charges to be laid over the painkiller, told the appeal tribunal the RIU's failure to pursue the telephone records was just one of a raft of "dead bodies" that it was keen to bury by agreeing to pursue just a $4000 fine. In his submissions, Dale pointed to the lengths Dunn went to try to prove his team was got at. Dunn calculates it has cost him close to $50,000, including legal and private detective fees and a new $20,000 camera surveillance system of his entire property. He also compensated the owners who lost winning stakes by remitting training fees. The damage to his business has been incalculable, he said. McKechnie, who reduced the fine to $7800, said it was not the tribunal's job to solve the nobbling mystery "but if the man who made the telephone call was in some way responsible it seems a foolish thing to do to advise people in advance". Also foolish was the phone text, which Dunn showed the chairman, from the same person who made the phone call, to one of Dunn's stable employees. Sunday Star-Times cannot name the trainer referred to, but it read: "Me and … will have the last laugh, whatever happens". - Sunday Star Times

They say they have been a journalist. So can't be either ?

and they bet on golf? That is worrying!

You look pretty safe for the quaddie. Nice bet and return 2 horses in a 4 horse field. $17000 stake. More southern horses need to migrate north to take advantage of this.

That is a good result. What a weird drive on the favourite. Left an impossible task in a 7 horse field. ?

No heart attack in that leg ?

You will be back and you know it.?

Is that because its rails or bust because you won't get cover sitting parked in smaller fields? I really don't know as don't watch the races up there much.

Small fields don't help. Always next week to get a better draw too lol....when there are only 7 in a field you have a good chance of drawing by the rail sooner than later.

Good money for you then.

I don't have time to follow everywhere. Used to be big on Auckland and Cambridge in the old days when I was up that way because I could go and watch. Doesn't suit me to bet on small fields and I don't like the tight divvies. Shame to see Auckland lose its lustre as I think it is a good track for betting.

It is the week after the Jewels and in winter so one wouldn't be expecting any real good horses to start. Are you betting at Auckland tonight?

Prophetic.

Not sure about the draw with those 3 favourites inside him. Could work out but could not too.

Quite like Zippity Doodah in race 4 at 6 50FF and 2 40 FF. It has got better with each start and meets a slightly weaker field than it has faced. A good each way bet. And I see Speedy Command has come in a bit on the fixed odds from 11 to 7 50. Fair enough after a good run at Ashburton. Anybody fancy anything?

To be fair, he did offer any odds you wanted for Field Marshall. Forget Betfair, try Brodfair. No restrictions and choose your own odds.

A scroll down the Jewels Leaderboards offer a great insight into seeing how hard it is to win money. The 3-year-old boys section shows who has been exported and they appear to me to be that real solid C6-C8 pacer of yesteryear. There is not depth in that area much more. As for Auckland, There should more Canterbury horses sent up there in search of much better money. The fields are a scary size...or lack thereof.

Field Marshall has run some very fast times over 2600 and 2700 in the past so I think it could run 2 miles ok. I would concede though a NZ Cup over 2 miles would be a shock to the system if one had been on a steady diet of mile racing Couldn't you just go into an agency in Australia and drop 2000 on a horse just like that? Get them addicted to betting with a lazy 10 on the Royal Wedding and then they will need a racing bet every day to get their fix.

Where have all his horses gone? I see Smithy started the other day at the trials but his horses have been absent for quite awhile. Unless, I haven't been paying attention that is.

When does a sprint distance end? 1609, 1950, 2000, 2200, 2300? What is the definition of middle distance? long distance? Is a middle distance runner more suited to sprints or longer distance races? Brodie, After all of your analysis of horses can you identify horses in these 3 brackets? Just interested. I can sometimes lean towards a horse over 3000m at Methven on a dead track or a 2000 stand but don't study them deep enough to get past a feeling that a horse may enjoy a certain distance. In saying that I am glad a horse I like at Nelson is starting at a longer distance than 1950 ?

Heaven Rocks is half American and half an Aussie. This would account for his unruly behaviour. ?

born in Australia??

15 to 1 cos TAB are weak. Ask for 30 or 40.?

They are the jewel in the club's crown. ?

Maybe. At least he admitted it. I shouldn't be so harsh consider it was a simple brain explosion. I do like his training and driving so maybe I am a little disappointed he did this. Talented. Mr Renault stated that this was a deliberate action by Mr Smith who looked to his outside, saw his other horse there, drew the whip and struck the horse. Mr Smith, on the day, stated to Mr Renault, that he didn’t think his driver was hitting the horse or urging it on enough over the concluding stages. Mr Renault submitted that this was a safety issue as Mr Smith could not know what reaction the horse would take after being struck on the inside. He also stated that the Stewards take a dim view of Mr Smith’s actions and believe they are totally unacceptable. Mr Renault in answer to a question from the Committee, stated that Ms Diamant had informed him that the whip had struck the horse on the backside. Mr Renault said that even though it was only one strike, the perception to the betting public, was poor. Submissions of Respondent [11] Mr Smith stated that it was a “moment of stupidity”. He said that he owned REVERSE PYSCHOLOGY, that he was a “bludger” and hadn’t been anywhere in the past year. Mr Smith said that as he owns REVERSE PYSCHOLOGY and as he had a paying clients horse in the race, he had decided to drive BRONX VILLAGE. [12] Mr Smith said that he had told Ms Diamant that she would have to be tough on the horse, as he was a bludger. He said that he could see he was going well when he raced up beside him but straight away “knocked off”. Ms Diamant was only giving the horse little flicks, he said, and he had yelled to her to “get up him”. Mr Smith said Ms Diamant continued on with the little flicks and without thinking he reached around and struck the horse. He did not even think about it being a trials day and that it was a spur of the moment, a stupid thing to do. He also said that as soon as he had done it, could not believe how stupid he had been. He also said it was a bad look, a dumb thing to do, and still doesn’t know why he let it happen.