Couple who run nutrition business arrested for animal cruelty and child abuse over allegedly filthy home conditions including trash that ‘rose from floor to nearly the ceiling’

A husband and wife who operate a nutrition store in southeast Nebraska have been arrested due to the deplorable conditions of their home, according to police in the Cornhusker State. The squalor was reportedly so severe that the couple’s children were living among dead animals.

Police believe the visit began ominously when the husband was allegedly discovered sleeping in his car outside, seemingly to avoid the conditions inside the home. The defendant, however, claimed he was merely “waiting” there.

When asked about the children’s whereabouts, David Reynolds reportedly said he assumed they were asleep inside the house. He also mentioned that his wife was at work before leading the police on a tour of the residence.

Upon entering, the officer immediately noticed a strong odor of feces and urine, according to the affidavit. The officer detailed the overwhelming smell, noting feces smeared on the floors, clothing and trash scattered throughout the home, and several objects that had been urinated on.

The officer also observed multiple dogs and cats inside the house. As the father went to wake his children, the officer noted the persistent presence of waste and garbage on the floors.

There appeared to be attempts to address the fly problem, with fly paper hanging from the ceiling. However, each strip of adhesive was allegedly “completely covered with dead insects.”

In one of the children’s rooms, described as cluttered and littered with feces, the officer observed that a mattress had a small section set aside for sleeping. The rest of the mattress was reportedly being used as a trash receptacle, with garbage piled so high on the bed that it spilled onto the floor, forming a larger pile that “rose from the floor to nearly the ceiling,” according to an affidavit obtained by the Missouri Valley Times News.