Two arrested for child and animal abuse after finding their house of squalor, deputies say
LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — On Oct. 30, the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office (LSO) revealed the arrest of two people for child abuse and animal abuse.
The investigation started on Oct. 6 when the Capital Humane Society (CHS) received four dogs that were severely emaciated, dehydrated and malnourished.
SEE ALSO: Capital Humane Society finds four emaciated, anemic dogs by Conestoga Lake
All four dogs were half of the weight they should’ve been. One of the dogs, Teddy, was in too severe of a condition to survive. Teddy was humanely euthanized.
LSO Chief Deputy Ben Houchin said the women who brought the dogs to CHS had claimed she had gotten them from Conestoga Lake.
The woman lied about her name and address to authorities. Through investigation, it was determined her real name was Sarai Bloomquist, 41, and found her address.
A search warrant was executed on a residence near Van Dorn and 40th streets.
Deputies removed three malnourished dogs, four puppies, two chinchillas and a bearded dragon. Deputies also determined that two juveniles, aged 14 and 13, lived at the residence.
Child Protective Services came and took the children. Houchin said the bedrooms of the juveniles were “gross.”
Bloomquist and Jay Chalk, 46, were arrested for felony animal abuse and felony child abuse.
Since 2004, Bloomquist had been investigated 14 times after animal cruelty calls.
“It was one of the most disgusting houses our investigators have ever been in,” Houchin said. “The way they described the odor, the house and how dirty it was, it took back seasoned investigators and they had children and animals living in this squalor.”
Courtesy: Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office
