Racing trainer gambled $2m, then claimed bankruptcy
A disgraced harness racing trainer banned from the industry for life for persistent fraud gambled over $2 million before filing for bankruptcy.
Mitchell Paul Kerr was banned from the industry in April 2021 after selling a non-existent horse for $40,000 to an “owner” he then continued to invoice for training, fees, incidentals and insurance totalling $26,000.
Under the business name Mitch Kerr Racing, the 32-year-old also invoiced the owners of six other horses for insurance premiums when he had not insured them. It was estimated the loss to others was $250,000.
He was later sentenced to seven months’ home detention. A month before his lifetime banned was imposed, Kerr filed for bankruptcy, leaving creditors $270,000 in the hole.
Now, it has emerged he gambled over $2 million on harness racing, greyhounds and thoroughbreds through Australian betting agency Ladbrokes prior to going insolvent.
When filing for bankruptcy, Kerr filed a statement of affairs declaring his gross annual income was $40,000. Analy- sis of his bank accounts showed his actual income over the previous two years was over $228,000, court documents released to The Press said.
Kerr was asked to disclose any accounts he had opened in the past five years. He declared one at ANZ, when six others had been opened in his name. When the accounts were analysed, it was found that he had spent over $2m gambling, losing about $950,000. By March 2021, he was overdrawn by $128,000.
He was found to have significantly contributed to the extent of his insolvency by excessive gambling, which is a crime under the Insolvency Act 2006. As a bankrupt, he was also prohibited from being involved in the management or control of a business or being self-employed. Between April 2021 and June 2022, he was found to still be involved in the management of his business Mitch Kerr Racing. In late 2021, he made eight applications for the Covid-19 wage subsidy and was paid $9600. He claimed his business had at least a 40% decline in revenue.
Kerr was sentenced to five months’ home detention in the Christchurch District Court yesterday. In a statement to The Press post-sentencing, he said he wanted to put the whole thing behind him. “I am a different person now and I just want to put my head down and carry on with my life. I work and I contribute to my community every day.”
Black Cap Matt Henry and All Black Anton Lienert-Brown were reportedly among the owners of horses Kerr had trained who had their shareholding diluted by over-selling as part of his earlier fraud. Henry owned at least three horses with Kerr. Some of the horses were oversold, reducing the value of his share.
Lienert-Brown was part of a syndicate with other racing identities who bought horses through Kerr, then had their shares diluted.
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) brought the most recent charges against him.
Its national manager of criminal proceeds integrity and enforcement Vanessa Cook said Kerr wilfully chose to mislead and withhold critical information from the Official Assignee when he entered bankruptcy.
“MBIE will not hesitate to investigate and prosecute individuals who attempt to take advantage of the system by misleading and suppressing facts.”