Ken Hornick, a former Woodbine racetrack and Standardbred Canada employee, has been charged with illegally trafficking drugs used to enhance the performance of racehorses.
An Ontario Provincial Police release referred to Hornick as a "drug supplier to the horse industry."
Hornick, 43, made headlines four years ago during an Ontario Racing Commission hearing into the positive drug tests on horses trained by Woodbine regular Bill Robinson. Hornick admitted he wrongfully hacked into the personal e-mail of former employer Hugh Mitchell, who was a Woodbine official at the time.
An ORC drug task force began investigating drug suppliers last fall in an effort to crack down on medication of racehorses.
"Obviously there was information that led us to believe that Mr. Hornick was distributing drugs within our industry," ORC deputy director Rob McKinney said.
With the help of Peel Regional Police, the task force executed two search warrants on Hornick's Mississauga home on Dec. 11, and found a number of "unlabelled, doctored substances."
After months of testing, police said the substances included steroids, ergoloid mesylates and ethamsylate.
Not all of the substances have been identified because the spectrum of possibilities is too wide, said OPP Detective Sergeant Steve Schandlen, who is part of the ORC task force.
Ergoloid mesylates are used to treat some mood behaviour or other problems that may be caused by Alzheimer's disease or multiple small strokes, although other studies show that it may have no beneficial effect at all. They are available only through doctor's prescription.
Ethamsylates are used to prevent and treat hemorrhages. Both are human drugs.
Asked why someone would use such drugs to enhance a horse's performance, Schandlen said: "If somebody believes it does, and they use it for that, then it's of interest to us.''
Hornick had already left Toronto's Woodbine racetrack and was an advertising representative for Trot magazine at Standardbred Canada when he admitted he turned one of Mitchell's e-mails over to an assistant trainer for Robinson. He later resigned from Standardbred Canada.
Reached at his home yesterday, Hornick said: "I'm just not saying nothing."
Hornick is charged with two counts of possession for the purpose of trafficking, one count of possession of a controlled substance under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, and 10 counts of illegally possessing drugs.
Schandlen said the ORC task force targets two things: therapeutic and non-therapeutic medication. The non-therapeutic medications are generally the ones used to enhance performance, he said.
Also at issue are therapeutic products diverted from the normal chain of supply, such as obtaining drugs without a prescription.
Hornick is not licensed to sell therapeutic drugs. Currently, he is licensed by the ORC as an owner and a groom.
The investigation continues, Schandlen said, and there may be further criminal charges and regulatory action.
Hornick will appear in Provincial Court in Brampton, Ont., on June 5.