A cruel Queens hoarder could face up to a year behind bars for allegedly cramming nearly 50 dogs inside his filthy one-bedroom apartment that a neighbor described as a “hell hole,” prosecutors said.
Isaac Yadgarov, 37 – who allegedly crowded 48 Belgian Malinois dogs into the foul-smelling unit on 62nd Road in Forest Hills – was arraigned Monday on a 96-count indictment accusing him of animal abuse and neglect, according to the Queens District Attorney’s Office.
“We must do better for the animals of this borough,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a statement.
When animal welfare officials responded to Yadgarov’s seventh-floor apartment on May 8, they discovered an inhuman scene — the poor pooches packed together in the feces, urine and debris-strewn space, prosecutors said.
Some of the dogs were stuffed into closets and cupboards or packed into tight spaces with no access to fresh air or sunlight, according to the Animal Care Centers of NYC – which called the disturbing scene “one of the most heartbreaking hoarding cases we’ve ever seen.”
Members of the ASPCA and the ACC weren’t able to move around the apartment because of the large number of dogs, and struggled to breathe because of the stench of ammonia from the urine-soaked surroundings.
The dogs were rescued with the help of the NYPD’s Emergency Service Unit.
One neighbor previously told The Post that it seemed unimaginable that so many dogs were packed into the squalid space.
“We all assumed there were two or three dogs in there, we would never have imagined that they were that many, we never saw them ever, anywhere,” he said.
“It seems like a hell hole,” the neighbor added. “They never saw the light of day, because we would know if they were walked.”
Another neighbor, who identified herself as Sharon, said the floor always had a foul odor.
“It always smells like that here and I always hear them barking, barking, and he throws poop out of his balcony,” she said. “As far as I know, as we all know, he neglects his dogs. … If he takes them out in the elevator, it smells so bad, they pee on the staircase.”
Three of the badly neglected pups needed to be euthanized, while the rest were taken to the ASPCA and ACC, where they were medically evaluated, fed and socialized to prepare them for future foster homes or adoption.
Some were eventually transferred to Posh Pets Rescue, a non-profit on Long Island, according to the organization.
“These Belgian Malinois-mixes – who represent only a fraction of the animal lives saved through our partnership with the NYPD – are finally receiving the love and care they deserve,” ASPCA President and CEO Matt Bershadker said in a statement.
Yadgarov was not home at the time the dogs were removed, because he had been evicted from his apartment, according to the DA’s office.
A day earlier, he allegedly signed forms agreeing to the surrender of his dogs, prosecutors said.
He turned himself in on May 13, and faces 48 counts of overloading, overdriving, torturing animals, as well as 48 counts of failure to provide adequate food, water and shelter.
Judge Edward Daniels released Yadgarov on his own recognizance during his Monday arraignment, as the charges were not bail-eligible.
His next court date is Aug. 5, and he could spend up to a year behind bars if convicted.
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