Police: Couple found dead in home with more than 125 cats

YORKTOWN, N.Y. (News 12 Westchester) - Police in New York say they are working to remove over 100 cats from a home where a couple was found dead.

Police report the couple was found deceased in their bedroom on Monday while conducting a welfare check.

Not much is currently known about the deaths because authorities said they can’t investigate further until they remove more than 125 cats from the home.

Yorktown Police Chief Robert Noble is asking available animal lovers to adopt.

“Any place that can take in these cats is what we’re looking for. We’re trying to turn a negative into a positive,” Noble said.

Authorities said humane enforcement officers have been moving the cats to shelters.

However, the team said they can’t rescue all of them right away, because the shelters they are using are currently out of space.

“There’s probably another 40, maybe even 50 or more still inside,” said Ernest Lungaro, with the SPCA Westchester.

Lungaro said other shelters are trying to adopt the cats, while those already rescued are being treated for parasites, dehydration and eye infections.

Friends and neighbors of the couple who died said they never had any idea about the cat hoarding.

“When we first moved here, I would find every so often a cat beneath the pool deck, but I would have never guessed that many,” said neighbor Joe Prestia.

Police said it is early in their investigation but they don’t believe any foul play was involved in the couple’s deaths.

Copyright 2023 News 12 Westchester via CNN Newsource. All rights reserved.