Ahmet Zayad: Horse Owner, Active Off-Shore Gambler and Harvard ‘Mistruths’
Thursday night, Gambling911 has learned exclusively that Ahmed Zayat remains an active gambler with offshore gaming sites, despite racking up alleged millions in debts.
“We have long been leaders in the space and have never been wrong,” G911’s Senior Editor Payton Obrien stated. “Our sources are at the absolute highest levels of online gaming on this story.
And while Thursday night the New York Daily News reports Zayat claims he’s being extorted, one wonders how can Zayat have a license to race when he associates with known and convicted bookmakers?
Gambling911.com also learned Thursday evening from a number of folks in the horse racing world that Andy Asaro, a highly regarded horse racing advocate, sent out an email to about 200 media types with this article attached.
As this 2010 article confirms, Zayat lent millions to the Jelinsky Brothers, Michael Jelinsky & Jeffrey Jelinsky. Both have pled guilty to illegal bookmaking in Las Vegas.
For starters, money bet with bookmakers on horseracing doesn’t go into the pari-mutuel pools.
“That means these illegal bets that otherwise might have gone through the mutuel pools are stealing revenue from racetracks and horsemen,” a Gambling911.com source wished to convey.
“It’s also true that knowingly associating with bookmakers is a serious matter that, at least in some states, can disqualify someone from a racing license as owner or trainer.”
In California, for example, Rule No. 1902 reads: “No licensee shall engage in any conduct prohibited by this Division nor shall any licensee engage in any conduct which by its nature is detrimental to the best interests of horse racing including, but not limited to: (a) knowing association with any known bookmaker, known tout, or known felon.”
The state of New Jersey and local media there is all over this story in fact. It will be interesting to see how this all unfolds ahead of the Belmont Stakes next month. American Pharoah is gearing up to become the first Triple Crown winner in four decades.
“Zayat has long had difficulty with accuracy,” our source suggests. That source pointed out an article appearing in The Bergen Record back in 2010.
The website of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, the annual report for the beverage company, and Zayat’s own website have stated that he attended or received a master’s degree in business from Harvard University. Numerous publications have reported that over the last 10 years.
But Harvard’s business school told The Record this week that it has no record of Zayat’s attending the school. The Harvard reference was removed from the Zayat Stables’ website after The Record raised the issue.”
Zayat responded to the allegations late Thursday saying, "The rhetoric accusing me of owing monies over gambling debts is a pathetic attempt to extort me," adding that he expected the lawsuit to be thrown out.
"Wishful thinking,' says the G911 source. www.Ahmetzayat.com is purporting to have full information on the man – “with exclusive revelations very shortly”, our source notes.
- Nagesh Rath, Gambling911.com
