Racing

IHRB examining case of trainer Luke Comer jnr after horse carcasses found on his land

Case struck out by judge and Comer donated €20,000 to ISPCA after nine ‘fully decomposed’ carcasses found in Co Meath yard in 2021

The Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board said that in cases where a licensee appears in court, any verdicts or convictions arising are subsequently examined and where relevant are taken into consideration by the board. File photograph: Damien Eagers

Brian O'Connor
Sun Mar 24 2024 - 16:25

The Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) has said it is examining the case of trainer Luke Comer jnr, who escaped a conviction but donated €20,000 to the Irish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals at Navan District Court on Friday after nine “fully decomposed” horse carcasses were found on his land in Co Meath.

A prosecution against Comer, son of the billionaire businessman and trainer of the same name, was taken by the Department of Agriculture which outlined how its officials inspected the premises near Summerhill in March of 2021.

They found the carcasses near the main yard. It wasn’t possible to name the horses as identity chips were buried in the undergrowth. Comer was unable to provide an explanation for the presence of the carcasses.

Comer’s barrister said his client was “greatly taken aback” and knew nothing about the matter but co-operated fully with department officials. Comer apologised and took immediate steps to rectify the situation.

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Judge Cormac Dunne described the carcasses as being “in full view” which he described as “pretty startling”. He concluded that the public interest would be served if Comer donated €20,000 to the Irish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and he struck out the charges. Costs of €3,075 were ordered against the trainer.

Comer has had a tiny number of runners in recent years and his last winner was in September of 2020.

His father, who lives in Monte Carlo and whose own training base is in Kilternan, Co Dublin, is appealing against a three-year licence suspension, and €840,754 in fines and costs, after a dozen of his horses tested positive for anabolic steroids in 2021.

For its part, the IHRB has appealed against the leniency of those penalties. No date for those appeals has yet been set.

On Sunday, Irish racing’s regulator said it will examine the case involving Comer jnr.

“In cases where a licensee of the IHRB appears in court, any verdicts or convictions arising are subsequently examined and where relevant are taken into consideration by the IHRB,” said a spokesperson.

The case generated considerable attention and criticism on social media with calls for Comer’s licence to be taken away. Comparisons were made to how Gordon Elliott’s licence was removed for six months after an infamous image of him sitting on a dead horse in 2021.

Last year the IHRB ultimately conceded there was a lack of transparency surrounding the circumstances in which former trainer Homer Scott surrendered his licence in 2022 on the back of an inspection of his premises by department officials.

In other news, the ex-Aidan O’Brien-trained Broadhurst, now known as Massive Sovereign, pulled off a dramatic success on Sunday in the BMW Hong Kong Derby at Sha Tin.

The son of No Nay Never was a winner at last year’s Dublin Racing Festival for Ballydoyle when coming with a big late run in the Sovereign Path Handicap.

On the back of just one run at his new home in Hong Kong, the four-year-old, now trained by Dennis Yip, raced in similar fashion to land Sunday’s big pot under champion local rider Zaz Purton. Ryan Moore, who rode the horse at the Dublin Racing Festival, was only 12th on Ensued.

“He’s shown us so far that he’s the ideal horse here in Hong Kong and he’s got such a good attitude. He just takes everything in his stride since he got here. I loved him in the mornings, you love a lot of horses in the morning but they don’t turn up on race days — this guy has turned up on race day so far. I’m not sure how good he’s going to be, only time will tell but he’s done a good job so far.” said Purton.

Separately, star English sprinter Highfield Princess was euthanised over the weekend after recently sustaining injuries in her stable.

Trained by Yorkshire-based Irish man John Quinn, Highfield Princess was a hugely popular sprinter in recent seasons, notching four Group One victories, including the 2022 Flying Five over Irish Champions Weekend.

“She suffered an inoperable fracture following an accident in her stable and although over the past week she fought with the same extraordinary spirit she showed on the racecourse, last night she lost her battle for life,” said Quinn.

“She possessed Group One ability but also a Group One attitude. Whether it was a routine canter or a big sprint race around the world, she put 100 per cent effort into what she did. I am grateful for all that she did for herself and for our team. We will miss her more than words can say,” he added.

Highfield Princess rose from moderate handicapper to top-flight performer and her achievements ultimately included landing three Group One races in three different countries in just 36 days during 2022.

Brian O'Connor

Brian O'Connor

Brian O'Connor is the racing correspondent of The Irish Times. He also writes the Tipping Point column

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