A two-year investigation into the controversial running of Hillsin at Worcester in July 2023 reached its conclusion on Friday, September 19, with jockey Dylan Kitts and John Higgins, an associate of the horse’s owner, found guilty of conspiring to prevent the five-year-old from winning.
Trainer Chris Honour was cleared of involvement in the conspiracy but was judged to have misled stewards in the aftermath of the race.
Meanwhile, Burnley striker Ashley Barnes, Higgins’s son-in-law, had already been issued with an exclusion order by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) last year after refusing to co-operate with the probe.
What happened in Hillsin conspiracy?
According to The Guardian, Hillsin entered the July 5, 2023, handicap hurdle as the early 2-1 favourite but drifted out to 11-1 before the off, raising eyebrows.
Despite travelling strongly and jumping the last fence within a length of the leader, Kitts remained motionless and never urged his mount forward, eventually finishing third, a length and a quarter behind the winner.
That performance sparked immediate scrutiny. At a recent disciplinary hearing, Kitts admitted he had deliberately prevented Hillsin from winning, claiming he acted under the “perception of a threat” from Higgins.
Full verdict of the Hillsin investigation
While Kitts insisted he feared for his safety, the independent panel rejected that argument.
“The jockey’s life or personal safety was not threatened in the event that he failed to comply with the instructions which he received from John Higgins,” the panel said, per Sky Sports. “He had ample opportunity to refuse to comply with Mr Higgins’ instructions, had he been minded to do so.”
Kitts has not ridden in public since that Worcester race and has since left the sport. Higgins, like Barnes, refused to co-operate with investigators or attend the hearing, citing ill-health.
Although Honour was not implicated in the conspiracy itself, the panel concluded he had lied to the local stewards by suggesting that Kitts had told him Hillsin was “hanging” in the closing stages.
The panel described his explanation as:
“While it was a lie which could have been construed as the lie of a co-conspirator… it was far more likely to be attributable to a desire to defend a young jockey who had been found wanting in how he should have run his race.”
The BHA welcomed the outcome, stating:
“The actions of those involved in this case are fundamentally incompatible with British racing’s values and are an affront to the many thousands of people, up and down the country, who dedicate their lives to this sport and to competing fairly.”
Sanctions against Kitts and Higgins will be confirmed at a later date.