5 February 2019
Animal Protectionist call for life ban of trainer, Darren Weir and immediate investigation into 2015 Melbourne Cup win.

As news breaks that Darren Weir will not be defending himself after his stables were raided and 3 electrical devices known as jiggers were found on his property, the question that needs to be asked is how common and for how long have these devices been in use?

Elio Celotto, “We’ve known from several racing insiders that jiggers are in common use throughout the industry. We were told more than 2 years ago that jiggers have been in use at the Weir stables. Elio Celotto”

" It’s now imperative that the investigation needs to include the running of the 2015 Melbourne Cup won by Darren Weir trained horse, Prince of Penzance and ridden by Michelle Payne.”

“ If the racing industry is serious about reform, it needs to do everything in its power to get to the bottom of the problem and that needs to start with interviewing every employee and past employee of the Weir stables including Michelle Payne.”

“ For jiggers to work, the jockey needs to be complicit. He/she needs to know when and how to cue the response to a jigger. If Darren Weir is guilty, there’s definitely jockeys that are also guilty.’

“ If the investigation stops at Weir, this will simply look like damage control rather than a proper investigation.” CPR Is calling for a full inquiry into the racing industry that continues to fail to self-regulate. It’s also calling for an independent body be formed to regulate the entire industry.

“ The only way to get to the bottom of he corruption and animal cruelty in the racing industry is a national inquiry. As part of the solution it is imperative that an independent government body be formed to oversee every aspect of racing but in particular animal welfare”

“ We are contacted on a regular basis by racing industry participants who are afraid to report matters to racing stewards as they are supposed to. They fear for their jobs, their reputation, their safety and even the safety of their own family. They need to set up a safe and secure means for racing industry employees to be able to report breaches of the rules and in particular animal cruelty, without fear of retribution.”

“ The simple fact that the racing industry does not have a retirement plan for its competitors is evidence of how low on their list of priorities animal welfare is”.

ENDS

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