I have known for the last 20 years about the involvement of the Mafia at many east coast racetracks. Some of them are owned and run by them (organized crime families) while others have been so infiltrated by the crime “families” that it makes no difference if they are owned by them or not. I had farrier that use to work on a few of the tracks in Pennsylvania and New York state. He told me stories of the “Sandman” (which were later confirmed by reports that surfaced in Sports Illustrated) where everyone knew if he showed up at the track a horse would die that night. Here is just a list of stories that point to organized crime involvement at racetracks and drugging methods used by trainers. The first story even tells how to make a “milk shake” to induce a horse into winning a race.
Organized crime at the races – story 1
Organized crime at the races – story 2
This problem is not just in the USA it is world wide.
Organized crime at the races in Italy
This has got to be one of the main reasons NOT to support horse racing by gambling on the horses.