An Elephant Never Forgets

We learned today of the death of David Monaci, 53, a former trainer at Philadelphia Park.  Monaci's obituary can be found here:  http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/app/obituary.aspx?n=david-monaci&pid=149399853

Monaci made a name for himself at the Bensalem oval, but not for all the right reasons.  Instead, the native of Plainfield, N.J. was tossed off the grounds in 1996 after it was found his horse, Accession, was drugged with Etorphine, also known as "elephant juice."  In very low doses, Etorphine acts as a central nervous stimulant.

If this wasn't bad enough, Monaci became embroiled in the case of the "missing split sample," which made headlines throughout the racing industry.  A package sent via FedEx to the Louisiana State University arrived empty; it was later determined that another trainer, Frank Geraci, apparently working with Monaci, was involved in a bribe to "switch a urine sample."

As a result, Monaci lost his trainer's license for many years, while Geraci pleaded no contest to the charges.

You can read all the details here: http://law.justia.com/cases/pennsylvania/commonwealth-court/1998/monaci.html