Charges filed, arrest warrant issued in North Huntingdon cat-hoarding case

An arrest warrant has been issued for a North Huntingdon man accused of hoarding more than 70 cats that were malnourished and infested with fleas when authorities rescued them from a township home in September.

Since being rescued, the cats have been cared for at Frankie’s Friends, a cat rescue in New Kensington.

North Huntingdon police filed more than 80 counts against 44-year-old Matthew B. Jacobs, including 64 counts of aggravated cruelty to animals involving torture and nine counts of aggravated cruelty to animals that caused serious bodily injury or death. Both charges are third-degree felonies.

Police also charged Jacobs with nine second-degree misdemeanor counts of cruelty to animals, according to court records.

The criminal complaint against Jacobs detailing the allegations against him was not available Thursday.

The arresting officer, Theodore Kukich, said the charges are based on the findings of his investigation. He would not comment further.

When rescued, the cats were suffering from malnutrition and severe flea infestations. Dr. Becky Morrow, medical director and president of Frankie’s Friends, said the rescue was still working to get the cats back to good health before making them available for adoption.

Morrow said the house where they were found was full of cat waste. Several dead kittens were found, and it appeared other cats had been eating them. A kitten and an adult cat had to be euthanized.

The rescued cats had to be treated for an upper respiratory infection that had spread among them, which Morrow said “is not surprising given that they’re compromised from being in the bad conditions.”

Morrow said it appeared that no one was living in the house, but someone was supposedly coming there to take care of them. She said it appeared the cats had been in the house for about three years and were breeding, resulting in most being black-and-white and looking alike.

The cats were removed from the house over a week and a half. Most were inside the house, with some being found in furniture and up in rafters, while other were found outside, Morrow said.