Man with 160 dogs ‘didn’t know it was illegal’

EVERETT — Jason Larsen didn’t think he was breaking the law by keeping 160 dogs in a Gold Bar-area home, he said Tuesday.

Larsen and his wife, Serenna, made their first court appearances Tuesday connected to charges that they ran a multimillion-dollar puppy mill.

They both are charged in Everett District Court with six counts of first-degree animal cruelty. Investigators say the couple lived in a house filled with mistreated dogs and reeking of urine and feces. The dogs were seized during a raid last month.

“I didn’t know it was illegal to take care of that many dogs,” Jason Larsen said by telephone after Tuesday’s hearing.

He said the dogs’ owner, a woman with a long history of failing to abide by county animal control rules, assured him that he was doing nothing illegal.

Larsen said he and his wife didn’t live full-time in the house where the dogs were found. They had another place to sleep.

District Court Judge Roger Fisher gave prosecutors until March 13 to refile the felony charges in Snohomish County Superior Court.

Fisher asked the Larsens if they had money to hire an attorney. The pair appeared in court without a lawyer.

The Larsens said they couldn’t afford to hire an attorney. The judge advised them to seek assistance for a public defender.

The Larsens, both 37, quickly left the courtroom.

Jason Larsen said he wasn’t paid to take care of the dogs seized from the home. “I wasn’t making any money,” he said.

Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies and animal control officers on Jan. 16 raided the home outside of Gold Bar and rescued the dogs from what court papers described as “deplorable” conditions.

Many of the dogs were covered with urine and feces. Officials said the smell of excrement was so strong it could be detected outside the home. Several dead dogs were found in a freezer.

The dogs were frightened by the officers and defecated and urinated out of fear, Larsen said. That’s what caused the conditions officials described, he said.

The investigation grew after that raid. Another 450 dogs were seized from a Mount Vernon-area kennel connected to the case. Two people in Skagit County face numerous animal cruelty charges.

A Snohomish kennel, Wags ‘n’ Wiggles, operated by Renee Roske also is under investigation by the sheriff’s office. Last week, officials asked anyone who had bought a puppy or dog from Roske to contact detectives.

Jason Larsen said Tuesday the dogs in Gold Bar belonged to Roske. At least one of the dogs rescued from the home where the Larsens lived had a microchip identifying Roske as the owner, officials said.

Larsen said Roske told him that keeping the dogs as he did broke no laws. He said she paid for dog food and other supplies.

County animal control officers for years have tried to bring Roske’s kennel operations into compliance with the law. Previous actions included fines, but she’s never faced criminal charges related to her pet-breeding business.

Reached by phone Tuesday, Roske said she’d love to comment, but declined on the advice of her lawyer

Property records show that Roske’s sister, Mary Ann Holleman, owns the Gold Bar home.

Jason Larsen told investigators he met Holleman each month at an Everett Denny’s to pay his rent in cash, court records show. Investigators reported he also told them Roske made millions each year in dog sales.

Larsen said he and his wife have lived in Gold Bar for about a year and only had been working for Roske for about three months. Larsen said he’s never been in serious trouble with the law.

“I like dogs. I have three. I love dogs,” Larsen said.

Jackson Holtz: 425-339-3437, jholtz@heraldnet.com.

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