Cops: Brick Resident Self-Reported Animal Hoarding, Faces Charges; More Animals Found

The scene of an animal hoarding scenario at 730 Mantoloking Road, Brick, N.J., May 5, 2023. (Photo: Shorebeat)

Brick Township police on Saturday said a man living in the Mantoloking Road home where more than 100 animals were found Thursday through Friday called police to report the conditions in the home, and is now facing a criminal complaint. Meanwhile, the count of animals found in the home has risen.

According to a statement from Brick police issued Saturday, the final total of animals found at the home at 730 Mantoloking Road were 130 cats and three dogs, for a total of 133 animals in all.

The animal rescue effort took about 24 hours to complete, and included the presence of county health officials, animal control officers and a HAZMAT unit, in addition to police.

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According to the statement, the resident of the home, identified as Jeffrey Finlay, initiated the call for assistance for an “excessive number of animals inside his own residence” on Thursday night. Due to limited resources, police said, the removal of animals from the residence to appropriate care facilities took over 24 hours for all personnel involved.

The scene of an animal hoarding scenario at 730 Mantoloking Road, Brick, N.J., May 5, 2023. (Photo: Shorebeat)

The scene of an animal hoarding scenario at 730 Mantoloking Road, Brick, N.J., May 5, 2023. (Photo: Shorebeat)

The scene of an animal hoarding scenario at 730 Mantoloking Road, Brick, N.J., May 5, 2023. (Photo: Shorebeat)

Due to the nature of the situation, the Brick Township Police Department’s designated Humane Law Enforcement Officer, Scott Smith, responded to the residence. Smith would go on to report that all of the animals “appear to have been properly fed and are all pending veterinary reports.” All animals are being sheltered at the Northern and Southern Ocean County Animal Facilities, located in Jackson and Manahawkin, which are under direction of the Ocean County Health Department.

Finlay was charged with a disorderly persons offense, the equivalent of a misdemeanor under New Jersey law, for failure to provide care of a living animal or creature, and two township ordinance violations: failure to license an animal and violating the prohibition against harboring five or more cats/dogs or a combination of the two.