“Smell of Death” comes from a Las Vegas hotel room filled with live, dead animals

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – An arrest report reveals disturbing new details about a serious animal hoarding case in the Las Vegas Valley.

The report paints a more graphic picture of what police and animal control officers discovered in Las Vegas at the home and hotel rooms of a local couple.

Timothy Miller and Carolyn Luke were arrested after Boulder City police said they found dead animals in their car during a traffic stop.

On March 29, at approximately 7:30 p.m., an officer with the Metro Animal Cruelty Unit responded to an animal complaint call to a home address in the 89117 zip code. According to Las Vegas City Animal Control, they needed assistance with the investigation after receiving a call from the Boulder City Police Department for their traffic stop with Carolyn Luke and Timothy Miller. Boulder City police said the couple admitted to keeping other animals at two other locations – one at a hotel described only as an “inn” in the report and at the residence. Animal control officials said there were about 20 live dogs and 10 dead dogs at the residence.

The arrest report states that Miller and Luke provided Boulder City officials with the exact number of dead and live animals at the locations.

Over at the unnamed hotel, staff evicted Luke and Miller from their room due to numerous animal complaints from other guests. Complaints ranged from “the amount of animals and the smell of death coming from the room.” They also violated many hotel policies. According to police, Miller made a hotel reservation for March 28-30.

Hotel staff provided officers with a room key so they could gain entry.

The following animals were discovered:

• 39 guinea pigs
• 1 rabbit
• 2 hamsters
• 21 live dogs
• 12 dead dogs

According to the report, officers found dogs living in their own feces inside the home, as well as several dirty aquariums, bird cages and hamster enclosures. The “smell of ammonia” caused officers to have a burning sensation in their lungs and tears in their eyes. Turtles have been found with soft shells, indicating a lack of proper nutrition and hydration. Documents show they also discovered about 42 deceased animals in the freezer.

During a recorded interview with a Metro detective, Luke admitted that she had ongoing problems with her neighbor, which led her to bring several animals into the hotel to hide them from neighbors and animal control officers, knowing that she would Also shouldn’t do a lot of animals.

She also admitted that she had not allowed animal control officers to enter the apartment during a previous visit. She stated that she wanted to clean the apartment before allowing officers entry.

She further elaborated on the situation and admitted that the dogs’ deaths were due to heat stroke. She claimed it was a tragedy that they died. Miller and Luke put the dogs in a bag and kept them in the hotel room until they could bury or cremate them. Officers noted that there was never a call to animal control or even self-transport of the sick dogs to the vet or hospital.

Luke told the detective that she and Miller were on their way to the state line to give her friend several guinea pigs because it was becoming too difficult for her to care for them. She told Boulder City officials she didn’t believe there were dead guinea pigs in the car because they had only been there for 30 minutes and she fed them before they left the house.

She went on to say that there would be no dead animals in her home, although dozens of animals had been found lifeless. She often referred to them as her babies and stated that they took care of all the animals.

According to the report, investigators attempted to conduct a recorded interview with Miller but refused to respond without his attorney present.

Miller and Luke face 14 counts of intentional and malicious torture of an animal. The couple will be back in court on August 22nd.

The Animal Foundation has set up a hotline in case you or someone you know needs help with a pet. Just call 702-955-5932.

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