Disciplinary Panel Reasons regarding A Findlay, L Thompson, G Findlay, A Hall, R Thompson, J Carter
Press Release
1. Introduction
On 18 January 2016 the Disciplinary Panel ("the Panel") of the British Horseracing Authority ("BHA") met to consider a number of allegations made by the BHA against Alan Findlay, Louise Thompson, Gillian Findlay, Andrew Hall, Robert Thompson and James Carter. The Panel comprised Matthew Lohn (Chair), Lucinda Cavendish and Philip Curl. The summary decision, including penalties imposed, was issued on 22 January and can be found here.
The following is a written summary of the Panel’s reasons for their decision and the penalties imposed.
The matters alleged against the individuals were as follows:
Alan Findlay
1. Whether ALAN FINDLAY, on 25 January 2013 by placing lay bets on KHAWATIM and in the period between 9 April 2011 and 3 August 2013 by placing lay bets on some or all of the Horses and Races listed in Table 1 acted in breach of Rule (E)92.2 and/ or instructed others to place lay bets on his behalf and/or received the whole or any part of the proceeds of such lay bets, when he knew, or was reckless as to whether, he was prohibited from doing so as a Listed Person;
2. Whether ALAN FINDLAY acted in breach of Rule (A)50.2 by failing to provide telephone billing accounts for specified periods which are relevant to an investigation to the Authority within the time and in the manner specified when the request was made; and
3. Whether ALAN FINDLAY acted in breach of Rule (A)30 by acting in a manner which the Authority considers to be prejudicial to the integrity and proper conduct of horseracing in Great Britain namely directing abusive and foul language towards members of the BHS's Integrity, Legal and Risk Department engaged in carrying out an investigation.
Louise Thompson
1. Whether LOUISE THOMPSON, on 25 January 2013 and in the period between 9 April 2011 and 3 August 2013, acted in breach of Rule (A)37 by assisting, encouraging or causing ALAN FINDLAY to act in contravention or Rule (E)92.2 by placing lay bets on KHAWATIM and some or all of the Horses and Races listed in Table 2 on ALAN FINDLAY's behalf when she knew, or was reckless as to whether ALAN FINDLAY was prohibited from doing so as a Listed Person; and
2. Whether LOUISE THOMPSON acted in breach of Rule (A)50.2 by failing to provide telephone billing accounts for specified periods which are relevant to an investigation to the Authority within the time and in the manner specified when the request was made.
Gillian Findlay
1. Whether GILLIAN FINDLAY acted in breach of Rule (A)50.2 by failing to provide telephone billing accounts for specified periods which are relevant to an investigation to the Authority within the time and in the manner specified when the request was made.
Andrew Hall, Robert Thompson and James Carter
1. Whether ANDREW HALL, ROBERT THOMPSON and/or JAMES CARTER on 25 January 2013 acted in breach of Rule (A)37 by assisting, encouraging or causing ALAN FINDLAY to act in contravention of Rule (E)92.2 by placing lay bets on KHAWATIM on ALAN FINDLAY's behalf when they knew, or were reckless as to whether ALAN FINDLAY was prohibited from doing so as a Listed Person.
2. Background
THE RACE
2.1 The issues which form the subject matter of the inquiry were uncovered as a result of an investigation which was instigated following the 15.05 race on 25 January 2013 at Lingfield Racecourse ("the Race"), when KHAWATIM finished second out of nine runners. KHAWATIM was ridden by Stephen Donohoe and had been trained by Noel Quinlan. At the time of the Race, KHAWATIM was owned by The Unique Partnership whose members were Alan Findlay and Gillian Findlay. KHAWATIM finished half a length behind the winner, POLAR VENTURE.
2.2 Betfair's monitoring of the betting on the race triggered a number of concerns – in particular the significant lay bets placed on KHAWATIM prior to the Race by James Carter and Robert Thompson. In relation to James Carter, Betfair noted irregularity in his decision to both lay and back KHAWATIM within a short timeframe and in relation to Robert Thompson, Betfair suspected a connection with The Unique Partnership due to his largest bets being related to horses owned by that partnership. Betfair reported its concerns to the Stewards although no running and riding offences have been brought in relation to the race. The matter was subsequently referred to the BHA's Integrity, Legal and Risk department for further investigation and a formal request for disclosure of records relating to these issues was made to Betfair and Betdaq.
THE BETTING
2.3 Examination of the betting material revealed that there were four accounts associated with the suspicious lay betting on the 25 January 2013 Race. The first of the lay bets to be placed on the race was from Alan Findlay's Betdaq account ("the AF Betdaq Account"). This bet was placed on the day of the race at 2:49pm to a liability of £2,538. The account continued to lay the horse until 3:03pm, two minutes before the Race commenced. The account was then used to place a back bet of £1,597 on POLAR VENTURE which subsequently won the Race.
2.4 The betting on the Findlay accounts was reflected in the betting activity on the accounts of Robert Thompson, James Carter and Andrew Hall. At 10.05am on 24 January 2013, £10,000 was deposited into the Robert Thompson Betfair account ("the RT Betfair Account"). On 25 January 2013, a further £5,000 was deposited into the account at 1:41pm followed by £4,000 sometime before 2:42pm. Between 1:49pm and 2:42pm the account backed KHAWATIM. Between 2:54pm and 2:57pm the account changed and started to lay the horse, five minutes after the AF Betdaq Account had started doing the same. During this three minute period, the account layed KHAWATIM to a liability of £8,594, to make a profit of £2,399 (after accounting for the loss on the back bets).
2.5 At 2:56pm on 25 January 2013, the James Carter Betfair account ("the JC Betfair Account") placed a back bet on POLAR VENTURE. At 3:00pm, 11 minutes after the AF Betdaq Account began laying KHAWATIM, the account also began to lay the horse to a liability of £1,834 to profit £850.
2.6 Between 3:03pm and 3:04pm on 25 January 2013, Andrew Hall started placing lay bets in respect of KHAWATIM as well. These bets were placed using his Betdaq account ("the AH Betdaq Account"). In placing these lay bets, Andrew Hall risked £10,305 to profit £3,497. This was the only lay bet that had ever been placed using the account and began 14 minutes after the AF Betdaq Account began laying KHAWATM.
THE RESPONDENTS
2.7 Alan Findlay is a high-profile Northern-based bettor and racing enthusiast. He registered as an owner with the BHA on 25 February 2011 as part of the Unique Partnership with Gillian Findlay. Gillian Findlay is Alan Findlay's estranged wife. Alan Findlay's current partner is Louise Thompson whose mother is a member of the Two Ladies and a Gentleman partnership along with Alan Findlay and Kennith Black, who is a friend of Alan Findlay's.
2.8 Alan Findlay is the owner of a company called Pin Point Recruitment (the Company). Inquiries by the BHA have revealed that a number of the partnership members have connections with the Company. Louise Thompson is employed as a Director/ Manager and Gillian Findlay is employed as a part-time Manager. Andrew Hall is employed as the Company's Financial Director. Robert Thompson has an email address and mobile telephone number affiliated with the Company, although is not an employee. Robert Thompson is also the former partner of Alan Findlay's daughter, and the father of her child who is Alan Findlay's grandchild.
2.9 Alan Findlay and Louise Thompson denied any association with James Carter during the BHA inquiry but evidence uncovered by the BHA clearly contradicted this.
THE INVESTIGATION
2.10 The BHA having commenced its investigation into the Race widened the scope to include additional races. In addition to the lay bets placed on KHAWATIM, further examination of the betting records revealed that the AF Betdaq Account had also been used to place lay bets on a number of other horses. Nineteen of these bets were placed on horses connected to Alan Findlay. The relevant horses were all either owned by Alan Findlay, The Unique Partnership, An Englishman, Irishman & Scotsman (comprising Alan Findlay and A J Macari), or Two Ladies and a Gentleman (comprising Louise Thompson, Margaret Thompson and Kennith Black). Between April 2011 and August 2013, Alan Findlay placed lay bets on these horses to a total liability of £91,279 to profit £10,707. The relevant bets are detailed in Table 1.
2.11 Examination of accounts linked to those used to lay KHAWATIM on 25 June 2013 led the BHA to examine the accounts of Louise Thompson ('the LT Betfair Account") and Gillian Findlay. In respect of the LT Betfair Account, two lay bets were identified in relation to horses owned by or connected to Alan Findlay. These bets are detailed in Table 2. The total liability of the lay bets placed was £2,055 which resulted in a profit of £106. Examination of Gillian Findlay's accounts did not lead to further allegations being identified.
2.12 The BHA interviewed Alan Findlay, Louise Thompson, Gillian Findlay, Andrew Hall and Robert Thompson as part of their investigation. The BHA also interviewed Noel Quinlan, Stephen Donohoe, Joe Harthen and Mark Findlay, Alan Findlay's son. Noel Quinlan was the trainer in all of the races under investigation and Stephen Donohoe was the jockey in respect of two of the races. Joe Harthen was Alan Findlay's racing manager and was also employed by Pin Point Recruitment. In addition, the BHA obtained a statement from Noel Quinlan's registered accountant and bookkeeper, Nicky Pellatt. In relation to the betting account details and telephone transcripts released by Betfair and Betdaq, the BHA conducted a detailed analysis to ascertain betting patterns and account control. To assist, Betdaq also provided a number of audio recordings.
2.13 Alan Findlay and Louise Thompson indicated throughout the investigation that they did not know James Carter. Mr Carter refused to be interviewed by the BHA. Despite purportedly not knowing him, a photograph was uncovered by the BHA which had been taken on 1 March 2013 at the Lingfield Park Racecourse which showed James Carter and his wife, Lindsay Marie-Carter, in the company of Alan Findlay and Louise Thompson.
2.14 The BHA also found further evidence connecting James Carter to Alan Findlay and Louise Thompson. Evidence supplied by Betfair revealed that the JC Betfair Account was logged onto from a computer in the Dominican Republic at 4pm on 26 December 2012. Analysis of a Betfair account registered to Louise Thompson ("the LT Betfair Account") showed that this account was accessed the same day using the same cookie – i.e. the same computer was used in the Dominican Republic on the same day to access the JC Betfair Account and the LT Betfair Account.
2.15 Telephone Production Orders were issued by the BHA in respect of each person interviewed. Records were forthcoming in relation to Andrew Hall, Noel Quinlan and Stephen Donohoe but were not produced by Alan Findlay, Louise Thompson, Gillian Findlay, Robert Thompson or Joe Harthen. All of these individuals advised the BHA that their mobile telephones were registered to Pin Point Recruitment. Attempts to obtain these records via both Alan Findlay and the Network Administrator for Pin Point Recruitment were unsuccessful. Attempts to obtain these records through Gillian Findlay and Louise Thompson were also unsuccessful.
2.16 The representatives appointed by Alan Findlay, Gillian Findlay and Louise Thompson advised the BHA that the difficulties with disclosure had arisen due to a third party that had been instructed to enter into an agreement with the mobile telephone provider on behalf of Pin Point Recruitment. The BHA was advised that this third party had entered into an agreement with a provider that had gone into administration. It transpired that the provider allegedly in administration was Orange, the mobile telephone provider now known as EE.
2.17 As a natural consequence of the BHA's investigation and its attempts to obtain telephone records, Alan Findlay was in regular contact with the BHA's Integrity, Legal and Risk department. This contact took the form of letters, emails and telephone calls. On a number of occasions, the BHA's employees found Alan Findlay's conduct towards them to be profane and abusive. There were two instances that were of particular note. The first followed receipt of a letter from the BHA. Alan Findlay called the BHA to discuss the contents of this letter and during this call stated that the sender had "a cheek, a cheek" and that he should "stick [his] letter up his arse". He went on to refer to the sender as a "cheeky twat" who should "get off his lazy fat arse and have a look at whose fiddling around and … stuff like that".
2.18 Alan Findlay followed this telephone call with an email to the sender the next day. His email began "I think you are a twat" and went on to repeat the complaints that had been made during his telephone call the previous day. Alan Findlay stated it was "a load of shit" to say that he had been misconstrued in relation to telephone records and indicated that he had done nothing but assist the investigation to date. He warned the recipient never to contact him again and ended the email by advising the BHA that "instead of looking into stupid fuckers making a couple of pounds" they should "look at the real robbers".
