God, just something so bad. >> You're actually seeing the nice Aaron, the bad Aaron no one wants to see. She was 13 years old. She went in her bedroom with red paint and she painted on the entire wall, an operating looking table or a mor and drew my body on it with my head cut off and the blood running all over the floor and she doesn't remember who. And that's when we had to start trying to find her house. >> No, no, no, no, no. She's going into your chicken cage. >> This is the house of 25-year-old Aaron Olsen and 27-year-old Brennan Mickelson. A quietl looking home that hides a nightmare no one in the neighborhood could have imagined. Behind its doors is the stench of ammonia thick in the air, malnourished animals crammed into cages, and exotic creatures housed in poorly maintained makeshift enclosures. >> We live in a camper that we go camping. I don't know. How does that work? >> What begins as a routine welfare check quickly spirals into one of the most disturbing animal neglect cases investigators have ever seen. And as the truth unravels, so will the twisted world Aaron has built one creature at a time. >> What the heck? >> On the morning of Monday, June 19th, 2023, at around 9:27 a.m., officers from the Sparta Police Department, accompanied by humane officers, arrive at a residence in Wisconsin. Their visit follows the issuance of a search warrant prompted by multiple complaints raising concerns about the treatment and welfare of animals at the property. But nothing prepares them for the horrifying scene that awaits inside the house and beyond its walls. Upon entering, officers notice a strong ammonia smell that causes eye irritation. Cats of various ages are seen throughout the living room, some walking over feces on the couch. A wooden stand holds a small bowl of cat food, which appears insufficient for the number of animals present. >> Do you have a cell phone? You want to call her? Yeah, I feel like Karen is okay. >> Does she have any computers here or laptops? >> I don't know. She doesn't use one. >> Does she use the phone? >> Yeah. >> Aaron's cousin, who's been living at the residence, informs officers that the homeowners, Aaron, and her boyfriend, Brennan, are currently away, reportedly camping. As the search deepens, investigators begin to uncover signs of far more disturbing neglect. According to reports, an ammonia concentration of 17 parts per million is considered moderately hazardous and requires immediate cleaning of cages and bedding. Just as officers began to grasp the extent of the animals condition, Aaron calls her cousin. >> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Hold on. It's all just wanted to talk to somebody. brought a police officer back. It's a search warrant for in the search warrant says neglect or mistreatment of animals selling without a license. >> While the humane officers rescue more animals, investigators speak with Aaron's cousin to understand how long the animals have been suffering here >> for about 2 weeks, 2 and 1/2 weeks. What kind of things have you seen as as far as care for the animals and that kind of stuff? >> I mean, as far as like the the like feces clean up and stuff like that, like it was a lot worse when I got here. um because there were more animals when I got here, but within the past couple weeks, I mean, she had she has it's got it's it's gotten better, but it's obviously still not where it should be. >> What do you know about the rat in the back? >> I have no idea about those animals. I don't really know. >> Who's been taking care of them? >> I wouldn't know. >> You wouldn't know. >> Has anybody been here to feed and water the animals or take care of them since they've been gone on Friday? >> As far as I know, her mom comes every day. >> Okay. Does she feed any of the animals inside the house? >> As her cousin continues to share details about her time at the residence, the investigator brings up the topic that has prompted the entire investigation this day. >> Here when she got the the mother dog and the puppies? >> No. >> Okay. Did you see them at all? >> I saw the the mom dog. Yeah. >> Just for that that last night that she had her. She was kind of freaking out a little. >> Is that when you did the video? This is a subject investigators will explore in detail later. And as the cousins begin to explain what she witnessed, Aaron calls again. >> We served a search warrant and in the process of serving the search warrant, we discovered at least one of your rats in the back there deceased in the kennel or the cage. To be honest with you, I was didn't go back in there, but I was told by the other uh agents that are here. As the investigator asks Aaron and Brennan to arrive at the residence, the humane officers start bringing out the rescued animals. >> Not a rat. >> No, I have no idea. I don't usually like go back and >> she wasn't here either until last night. Supposedly, Aaron's mother is the one who's supposed to be taking care of feeding the animals. >> Just then, as Aaron's mother arrives on the scene, she reveals unsettling details about her daughter's long-standing and deeply disturbing obsession with animals. The camper parked in Aaron's backyard belongs to her friends who have been living there with their 2-year-old child while searching for a permanent home. The discoveries inside that camper, including its deplorable condition, will soon come to light. For now, investigators focus on gathering as much information as they can from her mother about Aaron's behavior around the animals. >> I flipped on her a couple weeks ago and said, "You're not living like this anymore." >> Yeah. All of us are kind of like trying to been and I mean of all people like I definitely know about addiction. So I mean yeah I was like Erin you need to understand that this is an addiction. It's not about you know coping with your like her unhealthy coping mechanism is animals like mine was drugs. >> I gave her so much time to >> she doesn't have a license. >> No >> license. She's going to get and she's going to be charged with with doing that. >> Yes. And I >> the state is is >> prepare her for worst case scenario and I couldn't >> what is your thought on what what is your worst case scenario on this >> that she gets charged with everything all the way back >> and that's very possible >> and that scares the hell out of me because you know I understand where you're coming from but like what happened in Brooklyn and I don't defend her but what she did was she went to that farm where the lady had over 100. She gets there and the majority of them are sick. What does my daughter do? She takes 40 of the sick ones. And it was like, "What are you doing?" And I didn't know she had that many. >> As her mother speaks with investigators, disturbing details from Aaron's childhood will later come to life. For now, the list of rescued creatures continues to grow as more animal rescue workers arrive. As Aaron works with investigators and asks that the animals be spared, a list of rescued creatures, and the poor condition of the snakes begins to surface, adding to the case against her. >> We have no we have six kitten, I'm sorry, seven kittens, two adults. There's three more adults in the house that we can't catch. There are two ball pythons out there. There's no water. They're super dehydrated. Here's >> I'm just kind of open. >> Yeah, you just >> Oh man. The camper was in poor condition and noticeably warm. Officers observed garbage bags on the counter and used diapers scattered in the front area. In the back, they found a variety of fish and amphibians along with snakes housed in glass enclosures and fish tanks placed on countertops. Humane officers later contacted the Monroe County Health Department, which classified the camper as uninhabitable. It raised concerns as Aaron's friends had been living there with their two-year-old child. >> People living here. Oh my god. >> We live in a camper, but you go camping. I don't know. How does that work? >> I'm not sure. Aren't you always camping? >> While officers work to secure more animals after the call, much of the property still remains unchecked. The garage is also cluttered with cages and filth, prompting officers to document every discovery in the overall condition of the house with photographs for evidence. as Aaron's mother finally sheds light on her daughter's mental illness. >> So, you're actually seeing the nice Aaron, the bad Aaron no one wants to see. She was 13 years old. She went in her bedroom with red paint and she painted on the entire wall, an operating looking table or a morg table and drew my body on it with my head cut off and the blood running all over the floor. Yeah. and she doesn't remember doing it, you know. And that's when we had to start trying to find her help. And I searched and I searched and there was no uh mental hospitals that would take her at her rate. >> Aaron was secretly selling animals online. To hide this, she created multiple fake Facebook profiles using names like Octavia Marie, April Marie, and Ariana Joan. She posted online often offering puppies and other animals for sale. a pattern that her mother now clearly recognizes as part of the problem. >> You know what I mean? This we you've been counseledled by multiple counties on what you should and shouldn't be doing and it's going in one year and not the other. And it's but like you said, when there's an illness there, she's not recognizing a problem. >> And that's what I told him, like when you guys tell her this stuff, she's upset, but she hears you. And then I talk to her and she's like, "I know, Mom. I know. I know." And then like 3 or 4 days go by and she convinces herself >> that she's helping. >> Yeah. So why are they stopping? >> That's honestly most amateur to be honest with you. They they start with their heart in the right place. >> He just sounds like >> Finally, when Aaron and Brennan arrive at the scene, the details of the neglect and its history start to become clear. >> I've been begging for help and no one would help me. I've been begging for help with these cats and I've been turned down multiple times. They said they wouldn't help me and now they're coming to take my animals because they wouldn't help me. I've been begging for weeks for help. >> What happened? Cuz I thought you were getting trying to get a license or something. was trying to get a license, but then they came and said I needed to get rid of my animals. So, I got rid of a bunch and I've been begging for help with the feral cats that have been pooping everywhere and peeing everywhere and no one would help me. We had planned to keep our three cats and that was it. And I wasn't going to rescue anymore. I was giving up on dogs. I was giving up on everything and now this is happening. And >> would I be looking at somebody? and okay. >> Word of Aaron's treatment of animals had spread widely within the community. And while some rescue homes had initially offered help, they clearly outlined their reasons for backing out in the emails they sent to her. As the conversation continues, Aaron finally shares her version of events from a month earlier on May 23rd, 2023. The incident that ultimately led officers to her residence with a search warrant this day on June 19th. >> And what happened with the dogs, too? Cuz I heard something about the >> They're at our friend's house. are the puppies or >> puppies and then a dog that was >> So, I had a lady drop off a mom and puppies. She was threatening to throw them in the woods and I was trying to find someone to take them from us cuz I knew I couldn't have them, but I didn't want them dropped off in the woods. And I was trying to reach out to shelters. No shelters would help me. They just would, as soon as they heard my name, they'd hang up on me. And when I finally like the puppies were eating on their own, they were drinking on their own. The mom was aggressive towards them. She actually was aggressive towards all the animals. Like as soon as she'd go into the room where the puppies were, she started attacking them or she'd attack animals that would go into the room. And I was like, "Okay, this is enough. The puppies need to go to a home." So I rehomed them. And one of the puppies that my friend has right now is doing fantastic. He's eating on his own. He's playing. He's drinking. Lizzie is doing great. >> There's one part of the story that Aaron never brings up. Back on May 23rd, 2019, officers received a tip that she had posted images of a litter of puppies on Craigslist, attempting to sell them without a valid seller's license. She ultimately sold all six puppies to two separate buyers, making approximately $600 from the transaction. When an officer visited her home on June 5th, Aaron clearly denied ever having the puppies. But when the buyers were contacted and asked to return the animals to the state's care, each one confirmed that Aaron was the seller. But in the state in which Aaron and Brennan had turned in the mother dog, June Bug after the sale was nothing short of sick. >> She was puking and pooping everywhere and I was scared that she was going to need surgery. Aaron and Brennan then asked a friend to contact authorities and report June Bug as a stray even though they knew she wasn't. A later veterinary report would reveal that June Bug was suffering from severe parasitic and digestive infections, was dangerously underweight and required immediate medical attention. Brennan, however, has a perfectly clear explanation for the entire issue. >> People contact her. I don't want to >> mix it all up, but she just got Amaya from that girl, right? And the cat, be honest, I don't even remember. Like I said, >> she does most of people contact her >> asking about >> and still through her accounts on Facebook. Do you ever contact anybody through your phone? >> No, >> it's always her mom. >> What do you think is the biggest problem with this? I mean, this is the second time now that I come out here. Do you think she just has a big heart for animals or >> I do. She has a big heart, but she also can I don't want to say overdo it, but she just does too much at a time. And and then cuz it's like if I say no, she gets depressed and it it's hard to watch her be depressed and I want it. >> Now, as the weight of her actions finally begins to take form, Aaron breaks down. >> I know. I'm sorry. It's one of them things you had to learn the hard way and we'll figure it out and just don't give up. Okay. >> No, no, no, no, no, no, no. She's going into your chicken cage. >> No, no, no. >> As the search wraps up, investigators are continuing to process everything they've found. As Aaron and Brennan are taken into custody, the extent of their actions involving the animals becomes increasingly clear. >> Either of you have anything in your pockets? I'm just going to ask you now. I'm still going to patch you down real quick. So, go with you first. I'm just going to cut from the front like we said. >> Yeah. >> So, it's going to be right about there. >> Okay. Can I hold just for a second so I can >> You can you can move around. Yep. >> I I just wanted to know how they felt. >> We'll get you in right here. And then I'm going to reach in and buckle you in. And then once that's done, I'll get Brennon in. Okay. >> All right. Brandon, you just have the warrant in your pocket? >> Yeah. Okay. You mind if I just pet you on real quick? Do the same thing. Just going to buck him in front. And then we'll go to the other side over here. And I appreciate you guys working with us. It's cooperation does go a long way like I said. So you guys can sit right there. I can turn the air up cuz I know it's probably a little hot back here. I probably turn up the air off earlier, but I'll do it again. Okay. 1095 with Brenon. Aaron was charged with misdemeanor, intentionally mistreating animals, x times 7, improper animal shelter sanitation, x times 20, intentionally abandoned animal, operate dog sales without a license, resisting obstructing an officer, and bail jumping times two. She was eventually released on a $2,500 signature bond with conditions of no custody, care, ownership, or possession of animals, including livestock, fish, and amphibians with the exception of a service dog. While out on bond, she was arrested twice for misdemeanor bail jumping. In September 2024, Aaron Olsen was found guilty after pleading no contest to five counts of intentionally mistreating animals. The remaining charges, over 20 other violations, were dismissed but read in. Brennan was charged with misdemeanor, improper animal shelter sanitation, times 17, intentionally abandoned animal, and resisting obstructing an officer. He was released on a $2,000 signature bond under the same conditions as Aaron, but was also later arrested for bail jumping. In July 2024, he was found guilty after pleading no contest to three counts of improper shelter sanitation and resisting an officer. Remaining charges were dismissed. Ultimately, Aaron was sentenced to 2 years of probation in order to pay nearly $2,400 for veterinary care costs. If she completes probation successfully, her record may be expuned. Brennan was placed on a 24-month diversion program with a required 25 hours of community service. His charges may also be dismissed if he completes the program. And before you go, I noticed nearly 68% of people who watch these videos aren't subscribed. 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