Foster mastermind of horse scheme, RV says

Convicted con man Peter Foster masterminded a sophisticated scheme involving the ownership of five racehorses in trainer Ciaron Maher’s stable.

Maher’s former racing manager Ben Connolly claimed to own Group One-winning mare Azkadellia and four other horses that were really owned by Foster, Victoria’s Racing Appeals and Disciplinary Board heard on Monday.

It was a deliberately hatched plan masterminded by Foster to get around a ban on the horses put in place in place in January 2015 amid stewards’ concerns about possible connections to the con man, Connolly’s penalty hearing was told.