Updated 4:23 p.m.
EPHRATAH – Two former Ephratah residents have been arrested, accused of abandoning 10 dogs, along with goats and cats on a Ephratah property, leaving them with matted fur and covered in feces, Fulton County Sheriff’s officials said.
Meanwhile, the woman charged, whom Amsterdam police identified as the owner of a company called “Mohawk Valley Builders,” also faces accusations she scammed residents in Mayfield and Amsterdam, taking money for construction work she never started, then never refunding the money, Amsterdam police said.
In the animal case, Harvey L. Martz II, 47, and Laurie S. Murray, 52, were each charged with 10 counts of overdriving, torturing and injuring animals – failure to provide proper sustenance, Fulton County Sheriff’s officials said. Martz’ current residence was not listed, but Amsterdam police listed Murray as from St. Johnsville.
Investigators searched the property in Ephratah with a warrant Saturday and seized 10 Shih Tzu dogs, three goats and found an estimated two dozen cats on the premises, officials said. The cats were unable to be immediately retrieved and officials were expected to go back later.
The dogs had been left in a small room in a camper since the couple left last year, officials allege. Interviews of acquaintances indicate the pair had not lived there since June 2021, sheriff’s officials said.
All the dogs were suffering from matted hair and covered in feces,…
