Harry Slinger was a mate of Don Brennan's. Don was Harry's taxi driver of choice to transport him and his greyhound Lucky to the dog track, where Lucky competed. In May 1989, after Lucky crashed out of a race in St. Helens, Harry couldn't pay Don the £40 cab fare and asked him to wait outside a pub while he went inside to borrow the money. For security, Don insisted that Lucky stay in the car with him - a condition which offended Harry, who blamed the dog for his current predicament, threatening to tell a Doberman Pinscher that she didn't like Germans.