Franklin County Deputy Matt Hamilton was called to a home on Prairie St. in Charleston on Saturday to take a report of animal cruelty. At the home was a horrific scene of dead and starving cats that had been abandoned by their owner and left at the home several days ago. The property had just recently been purchased by John Verkamp from a Dolores Banning and Banning was supposed to be in the process of moving when Verkamp went by the home on Saturday to check the progress he found several cats in a pen behind the home, some dead and some still alive, the live cats were eating the bodies of the deceased cats. Inside the home Verkamp found 40 cats some in pens some running free, 17 cats were dead and the 23 alive were in poor health. The home was in very unsanitary condition with feces and dead cats on the floor and non food or water available for the living cats. The home was littered with trash too and it appeared the cats had been there for several days unattended. The Sebastian County Humane Society was contacted and responded to the scene to assist in taking possession of the living cats. The matter remains under investigation.