Airbnb jockeys Melham, Brown banned for lying

Star jockey Ben Melham will not be eligible to ride in races until March next year after being handed a further three-month ban for giving false and or misleading evidence to stewards.

Fellow rider Ethan Brown received an eight-week penalty — partly suspended for two years — for his part in also omitting the name of Mark Zahra as an attendee at the Mornington Airbnb gathering.

The significant sanctions ends the Victorian Racing Tribunal’s involvement with the five jockeys embroiled in the Covid-19 breach on August 25.

All five copped three-month penalties for the breach and graded supplementary bans for the false and/or misleading evidence charge.

While Jamie Kah accepted the sanction for the Covid-19 breach, Melbourne’s premier jockey has launched Supreme Court action against lying to stewards.

The appeal is slated for Supreme Court on October 28.

If successful, Kah could be the first of five jockeys back in the saddle from late November.

The remaining riders could return from mid-December onwards, a week apart starting with Gaudray, Brown and Zahra.

As in the previous cases, the tribunal on Thursday did not accept the “fallback position” Melham and Brown omitted Zahra’s name because they thought the stewards’ inquiries referred only to who was at the rental property when police arrived to investigate a noise complaint.

VRT Judge John Bowman implored Melham, whose career is at the “crossroads”, to clean up his act.

“It is not our job to preach to you,” Judge Bowman said.

“But no one wants a talent like yours to be lost to racing, we ask you to bear that in mind.”

Melham had been back riding for about three months following a five-month disqualification — due to betting offences and misleading stewards — when the August 25 gathering took place.

By the end of the ban, the Group 1 jockey will have served 11 of a possible 14 months suspended or disqualified.

Judge Bowman said the three-month penalty could be viewed by some as being “merciful” given Melham’s recent history.

“Within the last 10 months, you have been disqualified, not suspended, for two months for this very offence,” Judge Bowman said.

The tribunal took into account Melham’s guilty plea, remorse and the “commendable” gesture to donate 20 per cent of any prizemoney percentages won in the first three months upon his resumption of race riding.

Melham’s counsel, who also acted for Brown, told the tribunal last month the pair had made arrangements respectively to donate to Covid-19 appeals and The Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation.

Brown, 22, will serve an additional three-week penalty with the remaining five to hang over his head for two years.

His age, remorse, very good record and a “powerful” character reference, written by Cranbourne trainer and former master Michael Kent, helped the tribunal to arrive at its decision.

Judge Bowman, on behalf of the tribunal, thanked the jockeys, stewards and respective legal counsels for ensuring the five matters could be dealt with in a “timely and helpful manner” inside six weeks.

MORNINGTON AIRBNB JOCKEY SANCTIONS

Jockey — Covid-19 breach — False and/or misleading evidence

Ben Melham: three months, three months

Jamie Kah: three months, eight weeks*

Mark Zahra: three months, eight weeks (including four suspended for two years)

Ethan Brown: three months, eight weeks (including five suspended for two years)

Celine Gaudray: three months, eight weeks (including six suspended for two years)

subject of Supreme Court appeal

Originally published as Airbnb jockeys Ben Melham and Ethan Brown handed bans for giving false or misleading evidence to stewards

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