Peter family speak out on legal battle with NHA

The legal wrangles between Highveld trainer Tony Peter and the National Horseracing Authority (NHA) continue to drag on – some nine months after an infamous Summer Cup day in 2023.

This week the Peter family issued a media statement on the matter, following yet another postponement of an NHA inquiry into the events of that day – to 10 and 11 October 2024.

A brief background: NHA investigators visited the Peter stables adjoining Turffontein Racecourse on 25 November 2023 – just as the major Summer Cup race meeting was getting underway nearby. The investigators demanded to search the premises and people present.

There are different versions of what transpired thereafter, with physical scuffles reported by some witnesses.

Then, all Peter’s carded runners from the third race onwards – 11 horses in total – were summarily scratched on the orders of the NHA. Tony Peter was suspended from racing any horses. A day later this suspension was lifted.

A bodycam video of the incident was scrutinised by the NHA’s designated experts and a lengthy charge sheet drawn up indicting Tony Peter, his father and assistant Paul and his mother Marcelle.

The Peters lodged an assault charge and announced they were suing the NHA for a large sum of money in damages.

The inquiry was set down for 24 January 2024. Requests for this inquiry to be open to the public or media were refused. A hearing was held, but the full inquiry was postponed, then postponed again.

‘Milkshaking’ allegations

This has played out against a background of allegations of various trainers around the country engaging in “milkshaking” and other activities that could amount to doping – with the Peter name prominent in gossip surrounding this.

The Peter family’s statement reads in part:

“We have been inundated with enquiries regarding the delay in the finalisation of the inquiry regarding the events of Summer Cup Day, which until to date we have not commented on.

“However, as a result of recent events, we feel it is necessary, and without going into the merits of the case, to state the following.

“It is in the punters interest that we clarify the present situation.

“We have been subjected to the most unfair and intense public scrutiny, including videos that have been edited and commented on by anonymous sources, who clearly lack the courage to identify themselves. This has been done in an effort to fully deal with what transpired in the hearing and we will make the entire transcripts available for anybody who wishes to read them.

“We would have at all times been happy to keep the betting public and other industry stakeholders reliably informed regarding the inquiry proceedings and even from the outset requested the NHA that hearings be made public, including livestreaming. This request was denied by the NHA.

“We ask you, the reader, to consider, that if we were guilty of any offence why would we request the streaming of the hearing? It is not our doing to keep these proceedings as secretive as possible and invite the NHRA to make all the transcripts of the enquiry available to the public on their website.

“This, we believe, would stop the rumour mill and possibly assist all of those punters who lost money on Summer Cup day when our horses were scratched to better understand what actually transpired. At this time the NHA is still busy presenting its case, and we have not begun to present our case.

“The latest delay at the hearing, (which is still subject to a ruling by the panel and, as such, we cannot go into actual details thereof) was caused by a blatant and admitted contravention of one of the most basic and honoured rules regarding witnesses under cross-examination, which necessitated an application by us to the panel.

“At all times we have attempted to resolve this matter as speedily as possible.”