The couple allegedly found with heroin and a tied up cat in the back of their car have pleaded no contest to drug possession and animal cruelty charges.

Tyler Scott Vest, 23, of Valencia and Kylie Stringer, 26, a caregiver from Canyon Country each face one misdemeanor count of cruelty to an animal.

Both are facing charges for possession of a controlled substance. Vest is being charged with a felony and Stringer is being charged with a misdemeanor.

Vest also faces an allegation that he was convicted in 2012 of one misdemeanor count of grand theft from the person of another in case.

Stringer was released on her own recognizance, according to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department Inmate Information website. Vest was reportedly being held on $220,000 bail at the Men’s Central Jail in Los Angeles. He was scheduled to appear in court on Thursday morning at 8:30 a.m., according to the LASD Inmate Information website.

Both are scheduled to return to court on Jan. 27.

Photo Courtesy of the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station

On Jan. 9, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies arrested the couple after police said heroin was found in their vehicle which was parked near Sand Canyon and Soledad Canyon roads, prosecutors said. A cat, with its paws tied and bound together with electrical tape, was allegedly found in a pet carrier container found in the vehicle.

The cat could not move and was “meowing loudly in discomfort,” according to a Facebook post made by the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station. After the deputies worked to free her, Animal Control Officers came and took the cat.

The rescued cat, named “Lily” is “doing great,” according to a recent tweet by the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station.

The case remains under investigation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Santa Clarita Station.