Mark Richard Bayliss: Racing club manager indicates he will plead guilty to horse insemination fraud

Former South Fremantle and Collingwood player Mark Bayliss is expecting to plead guilty to one fraud charge and have the other dropped after “successful” negotiations with police prosecutors. The 58-year-old appeared in Albany Magistrates Court on Tuesday for a trial allocation of the two charges he pleaded not guilty to on August 15. Mr Bayliss is accused of gaining a $3300 benefit by fraud for horse insemination alleged to have occurred between September 1 and September 13, 2020. He is also accused of attempting to gain a benefit by fraud in the form of a $42,000 grant for the Albany Racing Club on January 11, 2022. Mr Bayliss was unrepresented in his appearance because his lawyer Mark Andrews was absent. Mr Andrews caused some confusion in the court with an email in which he stated that the charge concerning the alleged horse insemination was to be discontinued and his client would plead guilty to attempting to gain a $42,000 grant. Both Mr Bayliss and police prosecutor Sgt Matt Hartfield said the attempting to gain a benefit charge was meant to be dropped and a guilty plea was to be entered for the alleged horse insemination. Magistrate Erin O’Donnell adjourned the charges for the confusion to be cleared up. Mr Bayliss will next appear in Albany Magistrates Court on November 29.