Four plead not guilty to doping charges as attorney reveals evidence details

Four individuals arrested as part of the doping scandal that has rocked American racing pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to drug adulteration and misbranding.

Vet Louis Grasso, supplier Donato Poliseno, trainer Thomas Guido III and assistant trainer Conor Flynn are accused of supplying performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) such as snake venom, sulker, ‘Bronk’ and ‘Red Acid’ for use on racehorses while covering up their creation and shipping with false prescriptions and labelling.

“Often, the co-conspirators submitted or directed others to submit prescriptions to pharmacies under the names and patient files of canine patients, in order to disguise the fact that the PEDs were in fact being obtained for illicit administration to racehorses,” the indictment states.

Additionally, Geoffrey Berman, attorney for the southern district of New York, outlined in a letter that audio recordings had been acquired between Grasso and fellow vets Seth Fishman and Lisa Giannelli, who are named in a separate indictment which alleges the use of PEDs by high-profile trainers Jorge Navarro and Jason Servis, the trainer of Maximum Security, among others.

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Grasso and his alleged co-conspirators will next appear in court on October 2 with prosecutors believing they will need six months to sift through the evidence against them.

Navarro, Servis and the other individuals named in the indictments released on March 9 have already pleaded not guilty to charges of misbranding and conspiracies to manufacture, distribute and administer adulterated or misbranded PEDs that were administered to racehorses.

Navarro and Servis could face up to five years in jail if found guilty.

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