Jason Beeler, the owner and sole operator of Affordable Automotive Repair in Knoxville, Tennessee, is in some trouble. Several customers paid him thousands of dollars for severe repairs, like transmission or engine replacement, only to have their vehicles held hostage.

Len Nymeyer was one such customer, who paid Beeler $8,000 for repairs on his beloved 1964 Ford Thunderbird. He’d paid Beeler back in January, and every time he’d call for an update, Beeler made up excuses, pushed back the pick-up date, or didn’t answer altogether.

Nymeyer, like a handful of other customers who’ve experienced similar issues, tried to come into the shop to see the progress. But Beeler kept them at arm’s length.

“Supposedly he’s got the engine back in it, but I haven’t seen it. He doesn’t let you in the shop,” Nymeyer told WATE. He was standing outside of the repair shop, which had been padlocked closed after Beeler failed to pay rent. “I’m hoping it is in the building, but I don’t know.”

Other customers of the repair shop were just as frustrated

John Kohlman brought his 1967 Pontiac Grand Prix for repairs five months ago. Like Nymeyer, he hasn’t heard anything reliable about the progress on the car.

“He said it would take about two weeks to get it finished,” he said.

Kevin Villatoro paid him $10,000 to fix his 2002 Honda S2000 last February. Like the others, he’s frustrated the repairs haven’t been done. He doesn’t know if his car is even there.

Heather Tucker paid him $8,000 to have a refurbished transmission installed in her 2015 Subaru Outback. When he refused to provide an update, she decided to take matters into her own hands after not having her car for almost a year.

“I came unannounced. I was going to get it towed. He told me no, he refused,” she recalled.

Police stormed the shop and found the repairs were never done

Knoxville police raided the building after Beeler was arrested for three felonies unrelated to the shop, and officers found everyone’s cars. However, the repairs he’d promised to do were never done. The engine from Kohlman’s Grand Prix was missing, even though he’d paid for front-end work that didn’t involve removing it.

Everyone else was disappointed to learn the repairs they’d paid for were never done. Several of the vehicles weren’t touched.

Police continue to investigate Beeler’s shop to assess whether or not he’d scammed the customers, or simply never got around to fixing them despite being paid in advance.

Until now, the disgruntled customers must wait and see. But at least they have their cars back.