Man guilty of horse abuse returned millions of dead woman’s money
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - Court documents show the man who pleaded guilty to animal abuse, after letting a dozen horses starve on his property, was accused of stealing more than three million dollars from a woman in his care.
Brian Holloway, 53, is charged with two felony counts and 10 counts of misdemeanor cruelty to animals, after a tip last March led officials to investigate his stable on Slocum Road in Eastern El Paso County.
That’s where investigators say they found two dead horses, and 10 more severely underfed.
Holloway is scheduled to be sentenced for the horse abuse case Tuesday, January 21, in El Paso County combined courts.
KRDO recently obtained public court papers from a civil lawsuit filed a year earlier in April 2018 against Holloway, his wife, his mother, and several other entities - alleging Holloway and his wife bought the horse ranch with money stolen from an elderly woman in Arizona.
The lawsuit said Holloway and his mother were hired to care for a woman, Inez Cardinale, who had dementia and was considered a "vulnerable adult."
Cardinale died in 2017 at the age of 89.
The initial complaint, filed by Wells Fargo (in charge of Cardinale’s estate), says Holloway and his mother, Linda Crowe, were in charge of Cardinale’s finances, and had been instructed to use her money for her own good, not theirs.
The complaint stated Holloway was to be paid "$2,050 every two weeks" for his work.
In October 2015, the lawsuit alleged Holloway transferred $400,000 of Cardinale’s money from her bank account to his own.
In February 2016, the complaint said Holloway transferred another $1,300,000 from Cardinale’s account to his.
In April 2017, the lawsuit said Holloway got a check from Cardinale’s bank account at ENT Credit Union of Colorado Springs for $3,000,000, and deposited it into his own account there.
Soon after the lawsuit was filed, Holloway was granted $30,000 from his assets involved in the case to cover attorney fees and living expenses. The remaining money was frozen from his use during the year long lawsuit, despite Holloway's continuous requests to get more, stating the original amount wasn't enough.
In March 2019 the case was settled.
A judge ordered, and Holloway agreed to pay back more than 3 million dollars to Cardinale’s estate.
This is a developing story. Stay with the KRDO networks for the latest.
Editor's Note: The previous version of this story stated that Holloway stole the money. The article has been updated to reflect the settlement.
