Former Trainer Allard Sentenced to 27 Months in Prison
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Photo: Anne M. Eberhardt
Rene Allard, a former harness trainer, was sentenced to 27 months incarceration in federal court after pleading guilty to a horse-doping charge earlier this year.
According to a release from Damian Williams, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Allard received the sentence for his role in distributing adulterated and misbranded drugs for use in horse racing. The punishment was pronounced by Judge P. Kevin Castel in U.S. District Court.
Allard entered a guilty plea on June 2 while appearing remotely with attorneys Max Nicholas and Rebecca Orel. He admitted to a single count of drug adulteration and misbranding with the intent to defraud from at least 2015 to about January 2020.
While details of the Nov. 15 sentencing hearing are not shown yet on the court website, the Williams release says Allard was also sentenced to one year of supervised release. The release does not mention monetary elements, but a June entry in the court record states as part of the case disposition there would be an agreed forfeiture order against Allard amounting to $628,553.70.
The United States Probation Department recommended a sentence of 24 months' imprisonment. Allard asked for no more than 18 months, and the government requested a sentence similar to that given when Richard Banca was handed 30 months in September.