Dead woman found in back of van alongside swarms of cockroaches and 35 sick animals that had been jammed in 13 crates covered in feces



73-year-old's sons face neglect charges over her death in Phoenix



Nearly all the dogs and cats were so malnourished they had to be put down

The body of a woman has been found in the back of a van crammed with feces-covered crates containing 35 dogs and cats, a pigeon, and swarms of cockroaches.



The family of Lola Mae Stout may have been driving with her body crammed in the back of a van without air conditioning for several hours, Phoenix police said.



The 73-year-old woman's sons have been charged with one count each of vulnerable adult abuse causing death. The men and their 79-year-old father also face 35 counts of animal abuse charges.

Charged: Alan Stout, left, and his brother Gregory, face charges of vulnerable adult abuse causing death



Officers said when they opened the van they found Mrs Stout's body crammed in next to crates of animals. Every time they moved a crate, a swarm of cockroaches would scuttle away.

The family had allegedly planned to release the cats into a Phoenix neighborhood, when they discovered Mrs Stout was dead.



Temperatures in Phoenix reached 110F on Sunday, and the van had no air conditioning.



Husband: Alva Stout, 79, was sat in the back of the van, near his wife's body

Mrs Stout's family gave differing accounts as to when the woman, who suffered from strokes, high blood pressure and schizophrenia, may have died when police were called on Sunday afternoon, according to AZ Central .



According to court documents, Alan Stout, 42, said his mother had collapsed when they were loading the van in Quartzsite in the morning.



He claimed she was put in the rear passenger compartment of the vehicle and driven to Phoenix, which is about 130 miles away.



His brother, Gregory, 44, backed up that claim, but told police they stopped at a gas station in Quartzsite for a drink and then continued to Phoenix, according to CBS 5 .

Mrs Stout's husband claimed in one statement that she had got into the van in Quartzsite but when they arrived in Phoenix, they found she had died.

In a second version, he said his wife had collapsed in Quartzsite but they loaded her into the van and drove to a Phoenix neighborhood where they planned to release the cats.



Officers said he had been sitting in the back of the van, to the right of his wife, for the journey. His son Gregory was driving and the other son, Alan, was in the front passenger seat.

Dehydrated: The filthy crates contained 22 malnourished cats, suffering from heat stress

Filthy: The 13 crates in the back of the van were covered in feces and spider's webs

When emergency services were called to reports of a sick woman, they found Mrs Stout alongside the crates of animals, who were allegedly in an appalling condition.

Twelve dogs, 22 cats and a pigeon were found in 13 piled up crates, that were covered in webs, feces and cockroaches.



The animals were said to be dehydrated, malnourished and covered in bugs. Many were in such a bad condition that they had to be put down, officials from Arizona Humane Society said. Each crate was filed with several animals.

Bretta Nelson, from the humane society, said hoarding in homes was common the van case was one of the worst they had seen in a while.



'What made this so different was the fact that it was a van filled with dozens and dozens of animals, people, feces, debris, cockroaches, spiders, just something we haven't seen to that scope in a very very long time,' Ms Nelson told Fox 10 .

She added: 'Every time they would move a crate or kennel there was a swarm of cockroaches.'

Appalling conditions: Officers found 13 dogs, 22 cats and a pigeon crammed into the van

Infested: The animals had matted fur, and swarms of cockroaches were scuttling under their crates

Many of the animals had ring worm and bug-infested fur. All 22 cats and three dogs had to be put down and a spokesman for the Arizona Humane Society said it was unlikely the remaining animals would survive.

Ms Nelson said: 'The cats were very emaciated, very dirty ... hard to know when they had their last sip of water. They were panting, they were in heat stress, matted, emaciated.'