A Massachusetts woman has been arrested during a police stop after authorities discovered over 20 dogs and a macaw living in her van that was “covered in garbage and animal waste.”
Suzanne Eser, 58, was stopped at about 9:30 a.m. on May 27 for a motor vehicle violation in a restaurant parking lot on 1519 Silas Deane Highway, in Rocky Hill, Connecticut, reported Hartford Courant. Police said in a statement that during the stop they found several small dogs in the front passenger compartment and decided to investigate further.
After gaining access to Eser’s Ford Transit Van they found in total 22 dogs and a macaw, according to the statement. All animals have since been transported to nearby shelters for evaluation, police said.
Wethersfield Police Chief James Cetran told the Hartford Courant that there was a smell emanating from the van that could be picked up 30 feet away.
He said that authorities found a Husky and 20 or so smaller dogs, possibly poodle mixes, according to the news website.
Wethersfield police: Woman lived in van with a parrot and 22 dogs https://t.co/SwTsUI2xiT pic.twitter.com/w2NNuNAI4L
— Hartford Courant (@hartfordcourant) May 28, 2019
“Seven of them looked like they were about to die,” Cetran said.
Eser told officers that she had been living in the van with her animals for several months.
Cetran said they were unclear of Eser’s motives, reported the news website. “It could be a matter where she was rescuing these animals. She might have been trying to help these animals,” he said.
Eser’s van was towed away because it was not properly registered. She has been charged with animal cruelty and has posted a $1,000 cash bond.
In a similar case, a 20-year-old man from Missouri was charged with animal abuse for buying cats on a popular listing site before torturing and eventually killing them, according to reports.
Kaine Louzader has been charged with two counts of animal abuse after he admitted to police that he was abusing the animals, according to Fox 2 Now.
Between January and May this year, dozens of cats and kittens were found dead in the area of Wild Deer Lane, according to a probable cause statement obtained by the news website.
The prosecutor’s office said many of these cats appeared to be killed, while some kittens were found mutilated.
Court documents revealed graphic details of the type of torture Louzader allegedly inflicted on the animals including strangulation and dismemberment.
Moreover, police said Louzader had cuts and scratches on him, which he initially said was caused by an elderly patient at the hospital he was working at. But after further questions, he told police the injuries were caused by cats that tried to escape him.
