NEW YORK — Charges were announced Monday against 27 racehorse trainers, veterinarians and drug distributors in what authorities said was a widespread international scheme to drug horses to race faster, federal prosecutors said.

Included in the indictments was Jason Servis, the trainer of Maximum Security, which won the 2019 Kentucky Derby before being disqualified for interference, ESPN reported. According to court documents, Servis administered performance-enhancing drugs "to virtually all the racehorses under his control," The New York Times reported.

From February 2018 until February 2020, Servis entered horses in more than 1,000 races, the newspaper reported.

Another noted trainer, Jorge Navarro, also was indicted, according to Thoroughbred Daily News.

According to four separate indictments, filed in U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York, the 27 people hatched a scheme to manufacture and distribute "adulterated and misbranded" drugs and secretly administer them to racehorses under their control, the Times reported.

The doping allegedly affected races in New York, New Jersey, Florida, Ohio, Kentucky and the United Arab Emirates, ESPN reported. Authorities said the persons indicted misled federal and state regulators, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, several state horse racing regulators and people who bet, ESPN reported.

Participants sought to improve the race performance of horses to obtain more prize money, the indictment charged. According to one indictment, the actions occurred "all to the detriment and risk of the health and well-being of the racehorses."

According to the indictments, marketers and distributors of "blood builders," which stimulate a horse's endurance, have been part of the horse racing industry for at least a decade, ESPN reported.

Authorities said the drugs can cause horses to overexert themselves, possibly leading to heart issues or even death, the network reported.

Nearly 10 horses a week on average died at U.S. racetracks in 2018, according to the Jockey Club's Equine Injury Database. Last year at Santa Anita Park in California, more than 30 horses were euthanized after fatal breakdowns, including 23 in a three-month span, the Times reported.