PALM HARBOR, Fla. — Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office deputies charged a man Wednesday after finding him linked to a case of seven cats found in poor condition at a local animal shelter, according to a news release.
Ian Bender, 37, was charged with seven counts of aggravated animal abuse after the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, located at 9099 130th Ave. N. in Largo, received a small plastic bin containing five dead cats and a suitcase containing two cats in poor condition.
Pinellas Animal Services reported the surrendered cats to deputies on March 8, officials said.
Employees told deputies when they opened each container, the cats were “wet to the touch” and covered in feces and urine. One of the cats in the suitcase had to be euthanized “due to its poor condition,” the release said.
The only surviving cat ran an internal temperature of 106 degrees Fahrenheit, deputies said.
Upon further investigation, detectives found out the cats, all under 18 months old, were being cared for by Bender for at least a week and a half, authorities said.
Bender told deputies he agreed to take care of them for his friend who went away on a business trip.
It wasn’t until he was “sick of caring for them” that he decided to surrender them to SPCA, according to the release.
He told deputies he had nowhere to put the cats except the suitcase and plastic bin before taking them to the shelter.
Detectives determined the cats were alive and in good condition before they were put in the containers, although it is unknown how long they had been in them.
Bender turned himself into the Pinellas County Jail on March 27. The investigation is ongoing.