Daniel A. Garonzik, 52, had been charged with animal cruelty, a Class A misdemeanor carrying up to a year in jail, after his animals were seized by city police and Muncie Animal Shelter employees in an August 2014 raid.
Removed from the building were 541 mice, a foot-long alligator, two hedgehogs, two pythons, five corn snakes, 15 guinea pigs, 15 hamsters, four turtles, 29 rats, three hermit crabs, a frog, seven lizards and seven birds. The remains of 78 dead mice were also recovered.
Animal Shelter Superintendent Phil Peckinpaugh at the time of the raid called the storefront "very dirty, just a hodgepodge," and said some of the animals there did not have access to food and water.
Investigators said Garonzik -- a former resident of Pittsburgh, Pa. -- aspired to open a wholesale mouse-selling business. He was reported to be living in the storefront, at 3012 N. Granville, with the animals.
On Tuesday, Garonzik appeared in Muncie City Court and pleaded guilty to littering, an infraction, as part of a plea agreement that saw the cruelty charge dismissed. Judge Pro Tem Lon Bryan gave the defendant -- represented by attorney Mike Quirk -- until May 2 to pay a $1 fine and $133 in court costs.
The 632 animals seized during the 2014 raid included a parrot that repeatedly asked authorities, "What are you doing?"
It is not unusual for some misdemeanor cases -- especially involving first-time offenders like Garonzik -- to be resolved with guilty pleas to littering.
(Indy Star - February 3, 2016)
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