Cats

Former Tenant Charged With Misdemeanors After 109 Cats Rescued From Home

The man was charged with one count of animal cruelty and one count of violating animal owner duties

A man evicted from his Chicago home months ago faces charges after more than 100 cats were found living in deplorable conditions inside the abandoned house.

Robert Sawicki, 48, was evicted from the home in the 6200 block of West Roscoe, but he allegedly returned to the home many times to feed the cats inside, neighbors said. Since their discovery, a total of 109 cats were removed during the exhaustive clean-up and rescue efforts.

Sawicki was charged with one count of animal cruelty and one count of violating animal owner duties, according to Chicago Police. All offenses are misdemeanors.

The cat hoarding situation came to a head in July when surrounding residents could no longer take the unbearable stench coming from the home.

Workers said they could only remain inside the "deplorable" conditions of the house for about five minutes at a time because the smell was so overwhelming.

Many of the rescued cats were transported to Tree House Humane Society to be spayed, neutered and vaccinated. Other shelters have taken in the rest of the cats to prepare them for adoption.

The shelters are in need of cat food, cat litter, dog crates and monetary donations.

"For any organization to absorb so many animals, it's just overwhelming, " Liz Houtz, a volunteer at Tree House, said.

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