Man sentenced after police find dozens of dead cats in couple’s freezer

TRUMANN, Ark. (KAIT) - A man found with 24 dead cats in a freezer can no longer own or be around pets.

That was the order a judge handed down Monday, Dec. 8, after Boddie E. Williams, 38, entered a negotiated guilty plea to one count of aggravated cruelty to a dog, cat or equine.

Second Judicial Circuit Court Judge Pam Honeycutt sentenced Williams to 36 months of probation, with 24 months supervised.

According to the conditions of his plea agreement, Williams cannot own or be around pets. He must also pay all court costs and fees in $50 monthly installments.

Eight other animal cruelty charges, along with one charge each of possession of a Schedule I/II controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia, were nolle prossed.

Trumann police arrested Williams and Samantha Lyn Platz, 38, in July on 24 counts of aggravated animal cruelty.

Platz was also charged with endangering the welfare of a minor in the second degree. She is still awaiting trial.

Possession of meth

Around noon on July 2, an anonymous caller requested a welfare check on a girl living on the 600 block of South Ozark Avenue.

Officers went to the house and spoke with Williams, who was in a shed in the backyard. Williams was on probation, serving a suspended imposition of sentence.

Officers encountered two other people in the shed, Kevin Jones and Doris Arnold. All three of them had search waivers on file; they were searched and police found meth and meth pipes in the shed.

All three denied ownership of the drugs, but they were all arrested for possession of meth.

Police continued their investigation at the house. At the door, they spoke with Platz, the mother of the victim and the girlfriend of Williams.

Poor living conditions

Sgt. Blaine Cagle and other officers informed Platz of the reason for the visit and entered the house, where they were “immediately overwhelmed by a strong foul odor consistent with the presence of a large number of animals.”

“I was immediately met with the odor of ammonia, causing my nose and chest to burn,” Cagle said.

Cagle, who has asthma, said he “suffered respiratory distress due to the high ammonia levels,” and had to use his inhaler to recover from the stench.

Officers observed 10 or more cats and “large quantities” of cat urine and feces in the house, along with human food, pet food, and trash.

Cagle said he found fleas and gnats on his clothing soon after entering the house.

Officers found the girl in her bedroom, sitting on a mattress. “The room, like the rest of the house, was heavily soiled with urine, feces, and refuse. The air inside the home was barely breathable due to a strong ammonia odor,” an officer said.

“The mattress was bare, dirty, and appeared to have fleas. The room smelled of feces. I did not locate the necessary clothing for the child in the room, nor in the entirety of the house,” Cagle said.

Police said the girl appeared “visibly embarrassed” about the state of the home, and said she could not remember the last time she ate. She said they did not have any food in the home, and police confirmed they found “minimal” amounts of food in the kitchen.

Cagle declared the living conditions of the home “detrimental to the juvenile’s health and mental well-being.”

Platz was arrested for subjecting the victim to hazardous living conditions and endangering her welfare.

Police accuse Platz, the victim’s guardian, of allowing these uninhabitable conditions, failing to provide adequate care or hygiene for her, and demonstrating disregard for the child’s physical and mental well-being, including exposing her to animal deaths.

According to police, high ammonia levels can harm the respiratory system and organs, especially for children.

Further investigation revealed the floors were caving in throughout the house. The bathroom floor had fully collapsed, and the crawl space underneath it was visible.

Animal cruelty

While waiting for the police to finish, the victim asked Detective Amy Kary, “What is going to happen to all the cats?”

Kary told her a rescue organization would care for the animals in the house.

The victim asked, “What about the cats in the freezer?” Kary asked for clarification, and the victim told her, “There are a lot of dead cats in the freezer.”

Kary notified the officers and, after another search, found two deep freezers in the house that were filled with 24 dead cats of various ages in bags and boxes.

“Inside, I immediately saw two kittens curled up together, frozen, inside a box. Both freezers contained a combined amount of twenty-four cats and kittens frozen. Some of the kittens were newborn, others were juvenile and full-grown. I observed that some of the cats were curled up as they would be to stay warm, and some had their eyes opened as well, leading me to believe that some may have been placed in the freezer alive,” Cagle said after finding the bodies.

“Many appeared severely emaciated, with several found in curled positions suggestive of having been frozen alive. Some had open eyes, and others showed physical signs of suffering prior to death,” another officer said.

DHS removed the victim from the home and placed her in the care of her adult sister.

Code Enforcement declared the residence uninhabitable.

All four suspects were taken to the Poinsett County Detention Center.

Platz was ordered to have no contact with the victim.

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