North Wales man admits to animal cruelty
NORRISTOWN » A North Wales man faces court supervision on animal cruelty charges after police said he hoarded more than 100 cats, many with eye infections and open wounds, inside a “filthy” garage covered in feces and urine in Hatboro.
Mark Anthony Morrow, 50, of the 100 block of West Walnut Street, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to four years’ probation after he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of cruelty to animals, neglect by failing to provide necessary veterinary care and neglect by failing to provide sustenance in connection with a May 2018 incident in Hatboro.
Judge Wendy G. Rothstein, who accepted a sentencing agreement reached between prosecutors and the defense, prohibited Morrow from owning animals. Rothstein also ordered Morrow to comply with all recommendations stemming from a psychological evaluation.
An investigation began about 4:30 p.m. on May 4, when Hatboro police were dispatched to a residence in the unit block of Byberry Avenue after a caller reported concerns about multiple cats in a garage and that there is “a smell of deceased animals coming from the property,” according to the criminal complaint.
Responding officers reported being “met with the overwhelming smell of ammonia and other noxious odors” as they pulled into the driveway of the residence.
“Based on my training, education and experience involving the hoarding of animals, I know the ammonia smell is present because of an abundance of animal urine in a confined space. While outside the garage the smell was strong enough to cause discomfort to your nostrils and eyes after being exposed to it for even a very short period of time,” Hatboro Police Officer Brett Paul wrote in the arrest affidavit.
Paul added that as officers approached the two-car, detached garage to the rear of the residence they heard numerous cats “banging against the garage doors and running about inside the structure.”
A resident of the property told police the garage was rented to a man known only to him as “Mark.” The resident said the garage had no plumbing and no running water and that he recently noticed stains, on the outside of the garage, which smelled like ammonia, according to the criminal complaint. The resident added that when he opened one of the unlocked garage doors and peered inside he observed about 40 cats scatter.
Police subsequently applied for a warrant to search the garage for endangered cats. Police and local Humane Society officers returned to the property on May 5 with the warrant and found Morrow inside the garage and after several minutes of negotiations, Morrow opened the door, court papers indicate.
“Just inside the threshold I could see numerous cats inside on the first floor,” Paul alleged in the criminal complaint. “The smell of feces and ammonia was overwhelming. The entire first floor was covered in feces and cat urine.”
Authorities summoned local fire department personnel to assist with ventilating the garage to lessen the stench. Authorities had to wear personal protective equipment to enter the structure, court papers indicate.
“There were cats huddled up in every corner of the second floor. I then located what appeared to be a bookshelf completely filled with cats. The entire garage was filthy from the floors to the ceiling and covered with cat feces and urine,” Paul alleged, adding there were no windows or other ventilation in the garage and no means for the cats to leave the building.
While authorities did find some food and water inside, humane officers said the conditions inside were extremely hazardous to the animals and that all the cats appeared to be in poor health.
“Almost all of them had eye infections, hair loss and open wounds,” Paul alleged, adding humane officers reported cats inside the walls and floor boards of the structure.
Authorities removed a total of 116 cats from the property, according to the criminal complaint.
“All of the cats rescued appeared to have varying degrees of injury and other health issues,” Paul alleged.