PORTLAND, Maine — A Massachusetts racetrack has sued the owners of off-track betting parlors in Scarborough and Sanford alleging that together they owe more than $400,000 for unpaid bets, commissions and fees.
The East Boston raceway Suffolk Downs provides a simulcast of horse races to the OTB facilities at Scarborough Downs, Route 1, in Scarborough and at Pat’s Pizza, 505 Main St., in Sanford, according to the complaints, which were filed separately.
The Scarborough facility owes nearly $180,000 and the Sanford OTB owes nearly $240,000, the complaints allege.
Portland attorney Edward MacColl, who represents Scarborough Downs, said Thursday that the firm disputes the amount owed Suffolk Downs.
“We need to sit down with the spreadsheets and see where we disagree,” he said. “Then, we need to make sure that the other tracks were paid.”
Suffolk Downs acts as a broker for the Sanford betting facility and racetracks in other parts of the country as well as itself, he said.
MacColl said that he has not yet seen the complaint filed against the Sanford facility, so he could not comment on it.
The OTB facilities are not owned by the same companies and have no owners in common, Henry Jackson, executive director of the Maine State Harness Racing Commission, said Thursday.
The breach-of-contract lawsuits were filed by Sterling Suffolk RaceCourse LLC, which owns Suffolk Downs, in U.S. District Court in Portland. The complaint against Davric Maine Corp, which owns Scarborough Downs, was filed March 6. The one against OTB Facilitators LLC, which owns the Sanford OTB, was filed Monday.
On Thursday, a motion for an attachment of $239,272 against the Sanford facility was filed. A similar motion against Scarborough Downs had not been filed as Thursday afternoon.
If a federal judge grants the motion, the attachment, which is similar to a lien, would be placed on the Sanford property where the OTB is housed.
Scarborough Downs is preparing for its 65th season of harness racing at the racetrack, according to a previously published report. Qualifying races are set for March 18, 21 and 24.
Opening day at Scarborough Downs is March 28, with a 4 p.m. post time, followed by races the next day beginning at 1:30 p.m.