A TOP jockey was arrested in York by police continuing the investigation into alleged corruption in horse racing.

Former champion apprentice Robert Winston became the fifth jockey to be detained in an inquiry which has now seen a total of 26 people questioned.

Mr Winston, 25, who reportedly lives in Huntington, was bailed by City of London Police after being arrested yesterday afternoon on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud.

He must return to a police station in early May. The investigation into alleged race fixing has been ongoing since last September when 16 people, including champion jockey Kieren Fallon and North Yorkshire trainer Karl Burke, were arrested and bailed. More have been questioned in later raids.

The Racing Post reported that Mr Winston's agent, Richard Hale, had confirmed the arrest. He was questioned at a police station in York.

Mr Hale said: "It's Robert. I rang him this morning about something else and he said the police had been to arrest him.

"Robert stayed somewhere else last night and arrived home to find they had left the arrest warrant. He said he would be back in touch, but I haven't heard from him yet."

Mr Winston shot to prominence after steering 40-1 shot Magical Romance to Group 1 success in last season's Cheveley Park Stakes. The Dublin-born jockey scooped 114 wins during the season.

After the arrest, Detective Chief Superintendent Steve Wilmott, heading the investigation, said: "This now brings the total number of arrests to 26 persons.

"This is a very involved and complex investigation which has taken time to unravel. We anticipate that there may be more arrests to follow."

A City Of London Police spokesman said: "We have arrested an individual in the York area as part of the ongoing investigation into fraud in horse racing."

During the investigation into alleged race-fixing, more than 130 police officers previously raided 19 addresses across North Yorkshire, Suffolk, South Yorkshire and Hertfordshire.

Police are analysing more than 1,000 items, including 59 phones and several computers. The inquiry is examining allegations of fixing involving more than 80 races over the last two years.

Updated: 09:56 Thursday, February 03, 2005