The operator of a Middletown, Pa., used-care dealership allegedly used a remote control to shut down a customer’s car, repossess it and then claim pre-existing damages to the former owner’s insurance company.

Frank H. Markel, 59, was arrested by Middletown Police and charged with theft by deception, filing false or fraudulent insurance claims, deceptive business practices and criminal use of a communications facility, according to The Patriot News (Harrisburg, Pa.)

Police allege that Markel illegally used a remote tracking device to shut down a customer’s car on several occasions, then told the car’s owner the company providing the device required a reactivation fee to make the car run again. The device manufacturer said once it sold the device to Markel, he had control of its operation and there is no such thing as a reactivation fee, the newspaper reported.

Markel also terminated the unnamed female customer’s lease after the vehicle’s transmission failed, claiming a contract allowed him to repossess it if the car was damaged. The damage, which Markel made a pair of claims on, however, was there when the customer leased the car from him, according to court documents.