They lived on top of each other: an American stole a van and settled his family there with 35 cats and two dogs

A man was arrested in New Port Richey, Florida after police discovered he was driving a stolen U-Haul rental van that contained 35 cats and two dogs. Writes about it WFLA.

Photo: IStock

According to a statement from the Pasco County Sheriff's Office, 35-year-old Steven Martel was pulled over by police when they discovered his U-Haul had been stolen from Newport, New Hampshire. According to testimony, the U-Haul regional manager told police that Martel had not paid anything for the van since August 5, exactly one month before the arrest.

The police determined that Martel, his wife and a 72-year-old woman lived in a van with two dogs and 35 cats. According to the officers, in some cages there were 8 cats, and they lived on top of each other. The van was reported to have smelled of urine, and the cats were packed so tightly that many had yellow coats and open sores "due to being soaked in urine".

According to the assurances of the spouses, they ran an animal shelter in a van.

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“Many of the cats had patches of urine on their coats and bits of feces stuck to them,” said Dr. Tiffany Bogart, a Pasco County Animal Services veterinarian. “Some had ulcers from constant contact with urine.”

Pasco County Animal Services removed the animals from the van and said they would need veterinary care due to their living conditions.

Animal control later said all cats were healthy and under a mandatory 10-day quarantine. At the end of it, the animals can be returned to the owner if law enforcement authorities allow it. If not, the county will decide whether to give them to shelters or work with volunteers to find a permanent home for the animals.

“Hopefully we get full custody of these animals and we have already begun the process of treating all of their ulcers and skin conditions. They get antibiotics,” Bogart said.

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A 72-year-old woman was found to have "large open wounds" on her legs. The officers noted that she looked confused and had difficulty communicating. Doctors in the emergency room at Moreton Plant Northbay Hospital said she likely had a bone infection due to ulcers and was suffering from other illnesses from living in a van.

Martel claimed to have been the 72-year-old woman's acting guardian when his wife, who received the woman's $900 monthly Social Security benefit, was in the hospital for two months.

He said he used the money to care for a woman and animals and run a van, in addition to his $1 monthly check from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Officers took Martel to the Pasco County jail, where he was charged with 35 counts of auto theft, neglect of an elderly person, and cruelty to animals.

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