Co Clare-born champion jockey Kieren Fallon tonight denied any wrongdoing after being arrested over allegations of involvement in a massive race fixing scam.
Jockey Kieren Fallon being led to the winners enclosure after winning with North Light in this year's Vodaphone Derby at Epsom
Detectives are investigating a long series of alleged frauds covering more than 80 races around the country during the past two years and held a total of 16 people in dawn raids this morning.
After being questioned for around 12 hours at Bury St Edmunds police station Fallon was released on bail and immediately proclaimed his innocence.
He revealed that police had questioned him over his involvement with Miles Rodgers, formerly a director of the Platinum Racing Club syndicate. Rodgers was "warned off" - barred from racecourses - for two years by the Jockey Club in March after he was found to have made substantial bets on the Internet betting exchange Betfair that two of his syndicate's horses would lose.
He has since described the Jockey Club ruling as "a travesty" and denies wrong-doing.
Fallon's solicitor Christopher Stewart-Moore said: "The circumstances that relate to Kieren Fallon's arrest involve an individual who he has met on one occasion and whose name he did not even know at the time the meeting happened.
"This was during the course of a 10-minute car journey from Leicester races to the airport at Leicester where he then flew on to an evening meeting at Windsor.
"During this car journey Kieren Fallon did not speak to the individual concerned. In the circumstances we do not anticipate that this matter will be taken any further by the police."
Fallon has not been charged but will have to attend a police station in London in two months. The probe hinges on records of irregular betting provided to police by Betfair.
However, Betfair's sophisticated financial tracking system only began two years ago and sources said the alleged scam could have been going on for years before that and involved bets placed at racecourses.
Betfair allows punters to "lay" a horse - effectively they act as the bookmaker taking bets from other Internet gamblers. That opens up the possibility that a crooked jockey riding a favourite could be paid to lose and a gambler "laying" that horse on Betfair would win.
The Internet site passed its information on the alleged scam to the Jockey Club's security department headed by Paul Scotney, a former detective chief superintendent, who in turn called in the City of London Police which has the country's largest financial fraud investigation team.
That sparked nationwide arrests which included Newmarket-based Fallon, 39, the six times champion jockey and three-time Derby winner, along with fellow jockeys Darren Williams and Fergal Lynch, high profile trainer Karl Burke and 12 other people.
One of the horses involved in the Miles Rodgers case was Million Percent, who ran at Wolverhampton on November 14, and was trained by Burke. Williams is retained as a rider by Burke.
More than 130 officers raided 19 addresses across Suffolk, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and Hertfordshire, and arrested the suspects for "conspiracy to defraud".
Four men were from Barnsley, two men and one woman from Sheffield, one man from Doncaster, two from Stevenage, Herts, one man from Minskip, North Yorkshire, two men from Leyburn, North Yorkshire and three men from Newmarket.
Of the 16 people arrested 12 - including Fallon - were later bailed. Police seized computers and paper records which will be analysed by detectives to trace bets.
Fallon has already ridden 161 winners this year, Lynch and Williams both have 43 winners and Burke has trained more than 50. Fallon had a double Classic success this year winning the Oaks on Ouija Board and the Derby on North Light.
All three jockeys were due to ride at York on the day they were arrested.
The Jockey Club has already investigated Fallon and another jockey this year over allegations about a race at Lingfield in which Fallon's Ballinger Ridge lost by a head.
Fallon was found guilty of not riding out for first place and served a 21-day suspension. He denied any allegation of race fixing but is due to face a Jockey Club charge of bringing racing into disrepute next month, which he denies.
Mr Scotney said: "Earlier this year it became apparent that what had started out as an investigation into possible breaches of the Rules of Racing had uncovered evidence which indicated criminal activity which could undermine the integrity of horseracing.
"Consequently, we decided to refer the matter to the City of London Police. Our decision also took account of the fact that the Jockey Club has no powers of search or arrest and has very limited powers when investigating individuals not bound by the Rules of Racing."
For Fallon it was the latest shock in a stellar career which has been dogged by controversy.
Last year he admitted in a newspaper article to having a problem with alcohol and undergoing a 30-day programme of treatment. In 1999 Fallon, a married father-of-three, lost his job as a stable jockey to Henry Cecil following a newspaper report that he was having a relationship with the trainer's wife - he denied the accusation and his claim for unfair dismissal was settled out of court.
He has twice been fined for verbally abusing people at racecourses, including a race starter in 1995 and ambulance staff in 1999. And in 1994, he was banned for seven days for hitting fellow jockey Chris Rutter. Later the same year was banned for six months for violent or improper conduct after a clash with another jockey.