FBI 'activity' at company making Servis' substance of choice

In a 43-page indictment unsealed Monday by the U.S. District Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of New York, Michael Kegley Jr., director of sales for Kentucky-based MediVet Equine, acknowledged in a tapped call that horsemen could be charged for crimes in connections to his products.

However, hours after trainers' barns were raided at Gulfstream Park West and the Palm Meadows Training Center in south Florida, Kegley Jr. found the feds at his own door, too.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced ongoing “judicially authorized activity” at Tailor Made Compounding in Nicholasville, Ky. MediVet, formed in 2013, and Tailor Made share the same address: 200 Moore Drive.

It’s there that the substance SGF-1000 — a performance-enhancing drug trainer Jason Servis allegedly administered to top colt Maximum Security, among others horses in his barn — is said to have originated.

Federal investigators allege Kegley Jr. played a part in matching trainers with the substance, then mislabeled shipments to racetracks concealing its identity. To rebrand them is against U.S. Food and Drug Administration guidelines.

In a statement to CBS affiliate WKYT, Tailor Made Compounding said "several" employees were questioned Monday by federal agents "in regards to a highly publicized equine investigation in New York. Tailor Made Compounding does not nor has ever compounded medication for veterinary treatment of any kind. Tailor Made has and will continue to fully cooperate with any and all parts of the investigation, and at this time does not expect charges to be filed against TMC in relation to this matter."

MediVet's website, however, says it is "continuing research and development in partnership with Tailor Made Compounding." MediVet sells three products in all: SGF-1000, MediVet ACS and MPTS360.

“I've been using it on everything almost,” Servis, in another tapped call by feds, told fellow indicted trainer Jorge Navarro of SGF-1000 in a March 5, 2019, conversation.

Navarro was connected to a number of banned substances when mentioned in two counts by the Department of Justice. Servis, however, was cited only for the legal clenbuterol along with SGF-1000, which the indictment says “may cause racehorses to perform beyond their natural abilities, thereby increasing the risk of possible injuries.”

Curiously, SGF1000.com is a domain owned by an Australian company called Vecta Animal Health. The website includes a disclaimer that Tailor Made produces a “counterfeit” version of its SGF-1000, saying it “is made in a backyard operation” and is not sterile. Vecta has also opened a California office to sell direct in the United States.

Tailor Made also appears to go by “Taylor Made,” unrelated to the American farm, in some online spaces. Websites for the pharmaceutical companies that were live Monday were “Under Reconstruction” as of Tuesday morning.

However, a 2019 product fact sheet still available for SGF-1000 claims the drug rejuvenates and regenerates cells; improves stamina and performances; increases desire for physical activity; and is safe for competition.

“SGF-1000 is an innovative solution of unique proteins, cytokines, peptides and growth factors derived from ovine placental extract,” the sheet reads.

MediVet's website describes its SGF-1000 as an "innovative formulation" of amino acids derived from a sheep's placenta. It "works at the cellular level to promote rejuvenation and recovery from training, resulting in increased general health and wellness."

In an interview with the Daily Racing Form, Dr. Marty Scollay, executive director of the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium, said SGF-1000 was examined in 2014 and found to have no performance-enhancing effects. Because of that, jurisdictions aren’t testing for it.

But, she added to DRF, “It’s clear that people are using it because they think it gives them an advantage, and if they used it with the goal of it being a performance enhancer, then that’s a problem, regardless of what the effects are.”

Because SGF-1000 is not regulated by the FDA, it’s possible Servis’ alleged version of the substance has a different makeup than the one with which Scollay is familiar. The substance was banned given it does not comply with FDA standards.