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Probe Claims Racetrack Honcho Let High Roller Phone In Wagers

NEW YORK -- As reported by the Boston Herald: "Plainridge Racecourse head Gary Piontkowski took illegal phone and credit bets from a wealthy New York broker at the Plainville horse track, filtering cash payments through the track's money room, a scathing state police report alleges.

``The explosive charges, which have been forwarded to the state racing commission and are being sent to Attorney General Tom Reilly for possible prosecution, allege that Piontkowski blatantly allowed high rollers to phone in bets in violation of state laws.

" According to the report obtained by the Herald, Big Apple commodities broker and horse owner Sanford Goldfarb phoned in bets on credit and was paid with checks Plainridge officials originally claimed were for unspecified services. A top Plainridge manager later admitted to state police that the payments were for bets placed via the phone, a practice banned until this year. Beyond the phone bets, Goldfarb also allegedly was allowed to bet on credit, a practice still illegal.

`` According to the report, in some cases cash was removed from the money room and wagered at pari-mutuel windows on Goldfarb's behalf. ``Rebate checks'' were later cut to Goldfarb for his winnings. All the while, the Plainridge track would take a commission as high as 27 percent for all the wagers, racing insiders say.

`` One source told the Herald that Goldfarb bet as much as $100,000 in a day.

``The report claims that he bet horses at various tracks through the Plainridge track and usually won. Piontkowski sometimes bet the same horses and also cashed in, according to the report.

``...The scandal is the latest in a long line at the Route 1 harness track and comes amid a shakeup on the state racing commission..."

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