The Great Smoky Mountain Journal

Staff, Wire Reports

Posted: Tuesday, January 01, 2019 02:20 PM

Alabama Man Accused of Sexually Molesting Horse

An Alabama man has been accused of repeatedly sexually molesting a horse after its owner believes she found evidence of his crimes left behind in a barn stall.

Daniel Bennett, 18, of Irvington, is awaiting trial after he allegedly told Mobile County Sheriff’s Office investigators he attempted to molest a horse, AL.com reported.

The owner of the animal, a 20-year-old steed named Polly, told WPMI-TV she found Bennett in the barn Thursday night after her dogs’ barking led her to the scene.

Owner Francine Janes and her husband, who was armed with a gun, reportedly found Bennett hiding in a barn stall.

Upon being found, Janes said he told her that “He likes horses. He wanted to pet the horse.”

Bennett was reportedly held at gunpoint by Janes' husband until police arrived. Police reportedly discovered that Bennett had a trench coat with a burglar’s tool in it.

Janes doesn’t believe this is the first time Bennett has inappropriately interacted with her horse. She told investigators she found what she believes to be evidence in Polly’s stall multiple times throughout the month of December.

"I would say seven maybe 10 times," Janes told WPMI. "Toilet paper had been left. The hay stacks had been removed. Items had been turned over. And that's as far as I want to go."

Bennett’s arrest warrant lists his crime of bestiality as a misdemeanor, claiming he "engaged in or submitted to any sexual contact with an animal, to-wit: a horse," AL.com reported.

Bennett was charged with possession of burglar's tools, sexual misconduct and second-degree criminal trespassing. He’s scheduled to appear in court Jan. 18.