Thoroughbred Racehorse Trainer Pleads Guilty in Federal Doping Case

Damian Williams, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that defendant Jason Servis pled guilty for his role in the distribution of adulterated and misbranded drugs intended for administration on racehorses he trained, in connection with the charges filed in U.S. v. Navarro et al., 20 Cr. 160 (MKV). SERVIS pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil. SERVIS will be sentenced by Judge Vyskocil on May 18.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said, "Servis' conduct represents corruption at the highest levels of the racehorse industry. As a licensed racehorse trainer, Servis was bound to protect the horses under his care and to comply with racing rules designed to ensure the safety and well-being of horses and protect the integrity of the sport. Servis abdicated his responsibilities to the animals, to regulators, and to the public. This latest conviction demonstrates the commitment of this Office and of our partners at the FBI to the prosecution and investigation of corruption, fraud, deceit, and endangerment in the racehorse industry."

According to the allegations contained in the Superseding Indictment, the Superseding Information charging SERVIS, prior charging instruments and other filings in this case, and statements during court proceedings:

The charges in the Navarro case arise from an investigation of widespread schemes by racehorse trainers, veterinarians, performance enhancing drug (PED) distributors, and others to manufacture, distribute, and receive adulterated and misbranded PEDs and to secretly administer those PEDs to racehorses competing at all levels of professional horseracing. By evading PED prohibitions and deceiving regulators and horse racing officials, participants in these schemes sought to improve race performance and obtain prize money from racetracks throughout the United States and other countries, including in New York, New Jersey, Florida, Kentucky, and Saudi Arabia, all to the detriment and risk of the health and well-being of the racehorses. Trainers, like Servis, who participated in the schemes stood to profit from the success of racehorses under their control by earning a share of their horses' winnings and by improving their horses' racing records, thereby yielding higher trainer fees and increasing the number of racehorses under their control.

Servis ordered hundreds of bottles of the drug "SGF-1000," which was compounded and manufactured in unregistered facilities and contained growth factors that the defendant believed to be undetectable through regular drug screens. Virtually all the horses in Servis' barn received that drug, including the thoroughbred racehorse "Maximum Security," who crossed the finish line first at the 2019 Kentucky Derby. SGF-1000 was an intravenous drug promoted as, among other things, a vasodilator capable of promoting stamina, endurance, and lower heart rates in horses through the purported action of "growth factors." Servis approved veterinary bills to racehorse owners that contained concealed charges for SGF-1000, which were falsely billed under the line item "Acupuncture & Chiropractic." In September 2019, the New York State Gaming Commission released an advisory stating that SGF-1000 was prohibited under the racing rules and had been prohibited since 2012. SERVIS continued to allow the administration of that drug on the horses he trained up until his arrest in March 2020.

Horses trained by Servis were regularly administered the prescription drug "Clenbuterol" with no valid prescription, which was part of a deliberate effort to conceal that conduct from racing regulators and avoid mandatory reporting requirements.

SERVIS further obtained and transported a misbranded version of "Clenbuterol," which he obtained from convicted co-defendant Jorge Navarro.

Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation New York Office's Eurasian Organized Crime Task Force and its support of the Bureau's Integrity in Sports and Gaming Initiative. Williams also thanked the Food and Drug Administration for their assistance.

This case is being handled by the Office's Money Laundering and Transnational Criminal Enterprises Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Mortazavi is in charge of the prosecution.