Stud Farm Bosses Who Bought Illegal Medicines Must Surrender Profits

Stud Farm Bosses Connelly & Jones

A couple – who ran a respected horse stud farm – were ordered to pay a total of over £90,000 today following their convictions for involvment in Europe's largest-ever illegal veterinary medicines scam.

Management consultant Richard Jones, 61, and June Connelly, 70, of Winchcombe Road, Sedgeberrow, Evesham both appeared at Croydon Crown Court to hear the outcome of Proceeds of Crime Act proceedings.

Each were ordered to pay £37,950 within six months or face fifteen months imprisonment and Jones must pay an additional £15,000 costs.

They ran the Henry Field Stud, Naunton Beauchamp, Pershore when arrested as a result of a huge invesigation by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).

Jones denied, but was convicted on nineteen charges and was sentenced to six months imprisonment, suspended for two years, and was ordered to perform 200 hours community service.

Connelly admitted possession and importation of illegal medicines and was sentenced to four months, suspended for two years and ordered to perform 140 hours community service.

"You worked as a team, the jury found as much and they were right," Judge Ainley told them during sentencing in 2011.

The couple had a close friendship with ringleaders Ronald Meddes, 73, and Regine Lansley, 62, enjoying holidays on their French estate, and bought £57,000 worth of illegal medicines.

Regarding Jones and Connolly DEFRAS’s senior investigating officer in the case, ex-cop Derrick Price said: “They both exhibited a cavalier attitude towards the welfare of horses and knew exactly what they were doing in selling illegal drugs in the Worcestershire and Warwick areas.”

The court heard the couple bought illegal anti-inflammatories, anabolic steroids, tranquilisers, antibiotics, sedatives, painkillers and other miscellaneous products administered to horses, household pets and farm animals.

Jones was convicted by a jury of buying £61,000 worth of illegal medicines from the disgraced French-based 'Eurovet' wholesalers, which bought products form India and Australia.

He told the court the fifty-horse stud was his retirement plan, insisting his animals and those of his clients were not given illegal medicines.

“You are saying the horses were drugged up to the eyeballs, but they would not have been,” Jones insisted. “To my knowledge we did not do it. I certainly did not.”