Horse racing is an exceptionally competitive sport, and teams will stop at nothing to gain an edge. Even the jockeys that ride the horses can be in on the game, and that is exactly what one jockey is being accused of this week.
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According to The Daily Mail, Roman Chapa is a 43-year old veteran jockey, and he is being charged with unlawful influence on racing after being caught using a banned device. Photographs of the jockey at the finish line appear to show him holding a small device in the palm of his hand. Officials are saying that the device is used to electrically shock the horse to spur it to run faster.
The jockey was running in fifth place during a race in Texas on January 17 when his horse suddenly surged to the front of the pack and won the race by half a length.
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Chapa claims that the photographs are doctored and that "someone was trying to frame him."
Chapa has a history of cheating to win races, having been accused of using a nail in 1994 when he was an apprentice and an electric device back in 2007. He was suspended for both offenses, and he was also fined for the 1994 infraction.
Two days after the race, Texas Racing Commission stewards suspended Chapa until the matter could be investigated. If the allegations are confirmed, the commission will likely strip Chapa of his license to race.
Chapa is also facing a felony charge related to animal abuse. A warrant has been issued for his arrest, although he remains at large.
In 2002, Chapa received a sentence of 10 days for a plea deal on cruelty to animals charges after police said that he "torture[d] an animal, namely a dog, by beating it with a strap."
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