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Case File · Verdict · No. 091
Illustrated scene for the case “A Second Bid at Harrow Flats”
Exhibit
Verdict #091Sleuth

A Second Bid at Harrow Flats

Harrow Flats Agricultural Equipment Auction, a large open-air yard in central Kansas, present day — numbered lots arranged in long rows under a canvas awning, a raised auctioneer's podium at the north end, a registration desk near the entrance gate, and a bidder's lounge in a converted grain shed.Charge: Shill bidding — using a confederate to place artificial bids on Lot 22 during the 14 September 2026 auction so as to inflate the final sale price above true market value

Defendant

Pauline Dreck, consignor of Lot 22 — a 2018 John Deere 6155R utility tractor

On 14 September 2026, Lot 22 — a 2018 John Deere 6155R tractor, serial 1RW6155RAJL784203 — sold at Harrow Flats for $89,400, approximately $14,200 above the pre-auction appraisal of $75,200. The auction house's floor manager, Clint Boyle, reported that a man matching the description of Pauline Dreck's brother-in-law, Roy Kesner, was seen bidding from the east aisle in the final minutes and then leaving without registering a purchase. Prosecutors allege Dreck arranged for Kesner to push the price up, then withdraw, leaving the genuine final bidder — neighbouring farmer Garrett Opp — to pay the inflated sum. Dreck maintains Kesner attended only as a spectator and never held a bidder's paddle, and that the tractor's price reflects honest market competition. The question before this tribunal is whether Pauline Dreck conspired to place artificial bids on Lot 22.

The rules

  1. Four witnesses will give a statement. Each has their own angle.
  2. Six exhibits sit on the table. Some corroborate, some don’t.
  3. Render a ruling — guilty or not guilty — and name the witness whose word, taken with the evidence, settles it.
  4. One submission. You can’t change your ruling.
Begin deliberation