Charges against trainer Denis Hogan and two others formally dropped

All charges against trainer Denis Hogan and two others in relation to a controversial claiming race at Dundalk in 2020 have been formally dropped without any adverse finding against them.

A long-running case involving the Hogan-trained pair Tony The Gent and Yuften, first and second in a claimer more than 3½ years ago, effectively ended last week when the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board said it had no evidence to present to a referrals panel.

That panel, chaired by Ms Justice Siobhán Keegan, convened by Zoom on Thursday on the back of the IHRB suggesting it would be appropriate to provide some explanation as to why the matter was dealt with in the way it was. It also heard supplementary submissions.

The IHRB has been criticised for the length of time involved in investigating the case only for it to ultimately present no evidence whilst expert veterinary documentation was presented by Hogan last month.

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The referrals panel report, released on Friday, has outlined how the IHRB served an investigation report in April of this year in relation to four people alleged to have breached the rules of racing.

That report alleged that Yuften, the initial strong market favourite for the race, was deliberately prevented from running on its merits by jockey James J Doyle.

The IHRB concluded this was carried out on Hogan’s instructions and that professional gambler John O’Shea, with knowledge of an intended breach of the rules, backed Yuften to lose the race using the account of a third party. An associate of O’Shea, Noel Hayes, an owner in Hogan’s yard, was also alleged to have been involved in the conspiracy.

The case against Hayes was dropped in September and a week before a hearing scheduled for November 11th-12th, the IHRB said no evidence would be offered against the other three individuals.

The referrals panel said on Friday it had been placed in a “highly unusual position”. It said that without evidence it couldn’t adjudicate on the substance of the charges, so they were dismissed. It also said it wasn’t appropriate for it to adjudicate on how the matter had been conducted by any party. It made no order as to costs.

A statement from the panel said: “The referrals committee can well understand that the outcome of this case does not answer all questions and is far from satisfactory in circumstances where serious charges were laid.

“However, the referrals committee must act within the rules of racing and cannot assume additional functions.

“To be clear, the referrals committee has dismissed all charges which ends this case without any adverse fiding against any of those charged. It is for the individuals who have been charged to decide whether to raise any matters arising from the IHRB management or in any other forum.

“It is for the IHRB to decide whether to comment further on matters given the longevity of this case, the need for transparency and the public interest arising.”

An IHRB spokesman subsequently did comment: “We note the decision of the referrals committee to dismiss all the charges against the respondents involved in the case.

“We have initiated a comprehensive and detailed review of the case in order to identify changes that may need to be made to our approach in the future.”