In Waco, Texas, last month, a local used car dealer was arrested and charged with wrongful possession. What caught my eye about this situation, though, isn’t just the dollar figure. It’s the property itself. No, this isn’t some vehicle inventory dispute or issue with local drivers. Rather, the case involves three horses worth more than 120 bands.

What’s more, authorities say the car dealer attempted to hide the animals from the equine owner and investigators several times…which is no easy task.

In September, the McLennan County Sheriff’s Office arrested Joanie Giles, the owner of Giles Motors. Allegedly, the used car dealer refused to give back someone else’s horses.

Giles labeled the victim her former business associate. The car dealer said the other woman owed Giles more than $100,000 and that she planned to file a stableman’s lien against the woman. However, investigators said she never filed anything. Instead, it was the horse owner who filed a formal complaint, prompting the investigation.

Local authorities told Giles not to relocate the animals in question as they worked the case. Giles didn’t adhere to the command. When investigators expected to see the horses on the property, the animals weren’t there. Apparently, another of the used car dealer’s associates moved two horses to an equine clinic.

KWTX reported that the sheriff’s office arrested the used car dealer on September 17 and charged her with a third-degree felony. Giles made a $3,000 bond and has denied any wrongdoing.

After her arrest, detectives approached the equine clinic, which verified ownership and returned both animals to the rightful person. Then, Giles released the third horse to an unnamed “neutral” party, which brought the third missing horse to the owner as well.

While the used car dealer clearly went through a whole lot of trouble to keep the horses away from the owner, she caught herself a felony charge. It seems she would have been better off settling the whole matter in court to begin with.