Lawyer queries Aquanita charges

A Melbourne barrister appearing for one of the five trainers charged over the Aquanita scandal questioned why other trainers had not been charged.

Patrick Wheelahan appearing for trainer Tony Vasil asked why other trainers had not been charged along with the eight Aquanita employees.

Wheelahan referred to four other trainers who had been mentioned in text messages.

He said “the circle of trust has become a fiction, virtue of confining it to those who have been charged”, he said.

On the final day of the Aquanita hearing, council for Racing Victoria stewards, Jeff Gleeson, QC, gave a 160-page submission telling the Racing Appeals and Disciplinary (RAD) Board that the context of text messages made the document “a sorry and miserable read”.

Gleeson told the hearing about “privileged people in the racing industry firing off texts about just how clever they are to be getting away with this practice of race-day treatment”.

“About how happy they are to win with a ‘topped’ horse, which is a win for their dishonest system.’’

Trainers Robert Smerdon, Liam Birchley, Vasil, Stuart Webb and Trent Pennuto – plus stable employees Greg and Denise Nelligan and Daniel Garland – have been charged with a total of 271 counts after Lovani, a four-year-old mare, was being treated with an illegal substance at Flemington.

Gleeson told the hearing that the text messages were a vital part of the stewards’ case against the eight former Aquanita employees.

Gleeson said that the stewards had a powerful case against the eight charged people for the practice of cheating.

Those involved say the term ‘‘top-up’’ referred to topping up horses feed and water, which Gleeson dismissed quickly.

“Futile and, to be frank, pathetic,” Gleeson described the excuse put up for using the word top-ups.

He went on to say that Smerdon and the Nelligans were not participating in the inquiry following the uncovering of explicate and damning text messages.

Smerdon’s lawyer Tim Henry told the hearing that there will be no formal submissions made on the trainer’s behalf.

Article courtesy of Fairfax Digital and The Sydney Morning Herald