A man accused of neglecting reptiles that had been placed in his care from a previous animal cruelty case has pleaded guilty himself to 44 counts of animal cruelty and one count of holding protected wildlife, according to a report in the Somerset Commonwealth Journal.
Casey E. Allan was renting property on W. Hwy. 80 in Nancy in neighboring Pulaski County in December 2021 when complaints led the property owner and officials to search the home.
There, they found around 100 dead reptiles and numerous others who were malnourished and dehydrated in various states of suffering, according to a Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office citation.
At Wednesday’s hearing Allan was sentenced to a two-year probation and $100 fine for each count, for a total of $4,500, plus court costs.
As part of Allan’s probation, he is prohibited from owning or possessing any animal or reptile, and is prohibited from being associated with any business involved with animals or reptiles.
Allan’s charge of Propagation and Holding Wildlife Without a Permit came from the discovery of a Gaboon viper, a venomous African snake which is illegal to own.