A Long Island man was arrested Saturday on suspicion of locking 11 dogs in a rat-infested house filled with urine and feces and drugging two of them with cocaine, authorities said.
Christopher DiGiovanna, 42, faces nearly 20 charges after his Suffolk County home was searched by the county's SPCA and police after receiving a report of poor living conditions around 4:30 p.m. He was indicted.
Some of the ungroomed canines found inside were underweight, infested with fleas and covered in urine. The SPCA said in a news release that conditions inside the home were so sickening that some officers had trouble breathing.
“The air was so toxic with ammonia from urine, feces, mold and mildew that it stung the investigators' eyes and throats, making it difficult to breathe,” the SPCA said.
Ten dogs were reportedly kept in a small bedroom with sheets soaked in urine and feces, with dangerous electrical wires, hypodermic needles and other drug paraphernalia outside. Ta.
At least two dogs tested positive for cocaine exposure, according to preliminary tests by authorities.
Officials said other parts of the house were filled with fly waste and spider webs, and rats were running in and out of holes in the walls.
“The air was so toxic with ammonia from urine, feces, mold and mildew that it stung the investigators' eyes and throats and made it difficult to breathe.”
DiGiovanna was charged with animal cruelty to each of the 11 dogs, including 10 Chihuahuas and a Saint Bernard. Newsday reported.
If he is convicted on all 22 charges, he could be sentenced to 22 years in prison.
DiGiovanna was taken into custody on two other active arrest warrants in unrelated cases.
The dogs were rescued from a home and will be placed in foster homes once they have fully recovered.
