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Christopher DiGiovanna, age 42, was arrested Saturday, Nov. 23, after detectives from the Suffolk County SPCA uncovered 11 dogs living in squalid and dangerous conditions inside his Centereach home, police said.
Following a complaint about the animals’ living conditions, Suffolk County Police and Town of Brookhaven Animal Control and Code Enforcement executed a search warrant. Inside, they found numerous dogs underweight, filthy, flea ridden, ungroomed, and covered in urine, according to investigators.
“The air was so noxious with ammonia from urine, feces, mold, and mildew that it stung investigators’ eyes and throats, making it difficult to breathe,” Suffolk SPCA Chief Roy Gross said.
“Fly excrement and cobwebs covered the interior of the home’s walls and ceilings. Rats scurried about inside the broken out portions of the walls and floors.”
Officers located 10 dogs confined to a small bedroom lying on urine and feces-soaked sheets. Nearby, they reportedly found live, exposed electrical wires, hypodermic needles, and other drug paraphernalia strewn about.
Exams performed on the animals revealed that at least two tested presumptive positive for cocaine exposure.
DiGiovanna, who was wanted on two active arrest warrants for unrelated cases, was taken into custody on multiple misdemeanor animal cruelty charges.
Town code officials deemed his home unfit for human occupancy. Police said the dogs will be available to the public for adoption once they’re deemed medically fit.
The Suffolk County SPCA urged anyone who witnesses animal cruelty or neglect to contact the agency at 631-382-78722.
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