According to Arizona authorities, a woman who maintained an animal rescue sanctuary at her home was detained after hundreds of abused dogs were discovered and five dead puppies were located in the freezer. April McLaughlin, 48, of Chandler, was arrested on Friday after a search warrant was executed at her residence.
Police said the search was prompted by repeated calls and concerns from worried neighbors who complained about odors coming from the house and hoarding conditions.
According to police, the majority of the 55 canines removed from the property were old or special-needs animals. They were without water and in such horrible shape that they were going to be euthanized.
When police visited the now-condemned residence, the air quality was so terrible that firefighters wearing special breathing apparatus were called in. According to police, the house was then condemned.
McLaughlin was arrested and charged with 55 charges of animal cruelty, 55 counts of animal abuse, and one case of vulnerable adult abuse because her elderly mother also lived in the home.
According to court filings, McLaughlin told officers she didn’t see anything wrong with storing food in the freezer close to the dead animals. She also stated that she had managed the rescue for a year and had taken in far too many pets.
At her initial court appearance on Saturday, a judge set McLaughlin’s cash-only bond at $2,500 and announced she would be represented by a public attorney. A message seeking comment was left with the Maricopa County public defenders’ office, although it was unclear whether a specific counsel had yet been assigned to the case.
McLaughlin has refuted the charges leveled against her shelter.
