‘Crazy Rescue Ladies’ plead guilty in horrific Brick, NJ hoarding

🐶 Two women plead guilty to animal cruelty

🐶 Hazmat rescued 129 dogs, 43 cats

🐶 Teen daughter was living in filthy home

BRICK — Two women caught hoarding over 170 animals in gut-wrenching living conditions have reached a plea deal with prosecutors.

Michele Nycz, 60, and Aimee Lonczak, 51, each pleaded guilty to two counts of animal cruelty, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said Tuesday.

Lonczak, who lived with Nycz at a house on Arrowhead Park Drive in Brick, also pleaded guilty to child neglect for forcing her 16-year-old daughter to live in the home where animals were packed on top of each other and stewed in their waste.

Prosecutors will ask for 364 days in Ocean County Jail at their sentencing on Aug. 16. Authorities are also requesting community service and a lifetime ban on owning or working with animals.

Hazmat responds to Brick "Crazy Rescue Ladies" home

The charges stem from an investigation that began on Dec. 2 thanks to an anonymous complaint, Billhimer said.

Even when standing in the driveway, Brick police officers could smell the stench coming from the home. Once inside, the smell was intolerable.

They saw dozens of cats and dogs in crates stacked on top of each other in deplorable conditions. There were also the bodies of two dead dogs, Billhimer said.

Around 129 dogs and 43 cats were removed from the residence by a Hazmat team. Brick police Chief David Forrester previously said that the operation was responsible for a $27,000 spike in overtime.

Shelters from around the state worked together to take care of the animals. The home was condemned.

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