A Wisconsin home was deemed uninhabitable after police say more than 330 chinchillas were found living inside. 

Police responded to the home in the 2200 block of Melody Lane in Waukesha Sunday morning for a well-being check when they said they saw “obvious living condition issues” at the residence.

Officers called the home a “hoarder home” and said it was filled with stacks of clothing and various belongings.

Police said 331 living chinchillas were housed in the living room and dining room of the rental property and 25 deceased chinchillas were found in the garage and a chest freezer in the basement.

Three children-- a 7-year-old, a 9-year-old and a 17-year-old – also lived in the home, according to authorities.

“The smell of ammonia was so overwhelming that officers contacted the Fire Department, who were able to test the environment with specialized equipment,” a release from the Waukesha Police Department said. “They deemed the air unsafe to breath and the residence uninhabitable.”

The Humane Animal Welfare Society plans to take custody of the chinchillas and evaluate their health but will conduct "further examinations" before doing so as the owners refused to surrender custody of the animals.

The Department of Health and Human Services also responded to the scene and said child neglect charges will be referred for each parent. Officials also planned to explore charges for poor treatment of animals, but it was not immediately clear what those charges would be. 

Police did not release the identities of the animals' owners. 

Police are searching for the suspects who beat and robbed two young men walking home from work in Greenwich early Monday morning.

According to police, a 19-year-old resident of Port Chester, New York, and 21-year-old Greenwich resident were heading home from work at a restaurant in Port Chester around 3 a.m. when an SUV pulled up next to them at the intersection of Armonk Street and North Water Street.

Three suspects ambushed the young men, punching and kicking them in what police described as a "ferocious attack." The suspects stole their wallets and cellphones, then retreated to the waiting SUV. Police said one of the victims spotted what appeared to be a handgun.

The suspects are described as dark-skinned and Spanish-speaking. Police said they were traveling in a light-colored SUV with New York license plates. The car was last seen driving southbound on North Water Street with its headlights turned off.

Police said the two victims were hurt but declined medical attention.

Anyone with information is urged to call the Greenwich police tip line at 203-622-3333 or 800-372-1176. You can also email tips@greenwichct.org.

During an exclusive interview Monday, Gov. Dannel Malloy described Republicans and Democrats critical of his budget proposals as "grieving" and added that the framework "is not going to change a whole lot."

Malloy proposed about $600 million spending cuts, many of which are aimed at vulnerable populations in the state and services they depend on.

The governor proposed cutting $25 million in grants for organizations that provide mental health services throughout Connecticut. One hundred organizations provide mental health resources at more than 230 locations, and Malloy defended the trim by saying those cuts should be made up by people who have health insurance.

"We were subsidizing levels of treatment for people who were completely uncovered by insurance. Because we were the best at implementing the ACA, there are tens of thousands of people who have coverage for that. So there is money that will be coming in for that," he said.

The governor provided a similar answer to justify forcing potentially thousands of low-income adults who live just above the poverty line off of Medicaid or HUSKY and on to Access Health CT in order to buy their own insurance.

Malloy said that's a cut he isn't worried about because he claims those adults can afford to pay premiums once they receive help from the federal government.

"We’re talking about people who were above the poverty limit but still qualify for very substantial subsidy from the federal government," he said.

Malloy wouldn't rule out signing a future tax increase into law if it came from the General Assembly, but said he doesn't see how it would help, given that state law sets the spending limit for the state budget.

"Let’s say you raise taxes a half a billion dollars. We’re at the spending cap already. How are you going to spend it?" he said.

On the notion of a tax increase, Malloy said, "I am not advocating a tax increase."

The budget lays out tens of millions of cuts for higher education. Malloy's proposed cuts have led to an approved tuition hike at the Board of Regents for institutions like community colleges, Central Connecticut State University and Eastern Connecticut State University.

Malloy contended that his administration has made commitments to higher education since he took office and described this year's proposed cuts as a "trim."

“Every one of the systems will be getting more money than they got four years ago" Malloy said.

When pressed about students having to pay more than last year to attend state schools, Malloy said that students will also receive more aid in his current budget. The higher education spending plan also eliminates scholarships for Connecticut students to attend private colleges.

Friends and teammates were grieving Monday after learning that a beloved UC Berkeley student athlete who went missing in Los Angeles over the weekend was fatally struck by a car as he ran across freeway lanes.

Eloi Vasquez, 19, was hit on the eastbound 10 Freeway east of Vermont Avenue (map) about an hour after friends said they last saw him leaving a party near the USC campus, officials with the Los Angeles Police Department said.

It was unclear why Vasquez was on the freeway. The 45-year-old driver of the Chevrolet Impala stopped and told California Highway Patrol officers the man was running across lanes and she could not avoid him. The car was going about 60 mph, the CHP said.

Vasquez was declared dead at the scene. The driver was not arrested.

"We're heartbroken, we're devastated," said Wesley Mallette, a Cal associate athletics director.

Vasquez's family did not immediately comment on his death. Police said the family was "very distraught" and asked for privacy.

Vasquez didn't have ID or money on him when he left the fraternity house party in the 600 block of West 28th Street about 1:30 a.m. Saturday.

However, he did have a cellphone and had told friends over the phone that he was "going to the beach."

He was also on the phone with a friend in Northern California about 2:18 a.m. He told her he was "screwed," scared and lost.

CHP officials said Vasquez was struck by the car about 2:25 a.m. The coroner's office confirmed that the victim was Vasquez.

Vasquez was a freshman midfielder on the UC Berkeley soccer team. Friends said they made the trip to Los Angeles for spring break.

"Eloi was a wonderful teammate, he was very close to all of his players and our guys are grieving pretty hard" said Cal soccer coach Kevin Grimes. "I really loved Eloi and I know our teammates did, too."

The news of his death came as family members announced a $100,000 reward for his safe return and also said they hired a private investigator to help locate the teen from Novato.

The Cal Athletics website described Vasquez as "a wonderful young man who has excelled both academically and athletically here at Cal."

"Eloi always had a way of making you laugh and he brought energy to the room," said Vasquez's teammate, Alex Mangels, as he fought back tears.

A toxicology report was expected to be complete in a few weeks.

Today we lost a beloved member of the #CalFamily, Eloi Vasquez. We send thoughts & prayers to his family & friends. pic.twitter.com/Pq0VAEanJU

— Cal Bears (@CalAthletics) March 30, 2015

NBC4's Irene Moore contributed to this report.

Police are investigating after the body of a 26-year-old man washed up on a private beach in Stamford on Monday.

Authorities identified the body as that of Jorge Simon, 26, a native of Guatemala who had lived and worked in Stamford for seven years. Simon's family reported him missing on Feb. 16.

Police said they were called to the beach after neighbors spotted the body on a beach on Rogers Road around 1 p.m. There are no indications of foul play and police said the body seemed to have been submerged for a while.

Simon was last seen near Stillwater Avenue and Finney Lane around 12:15 p.m. on Feb. 14. Police said he had been out with friends that night and his family grew concerned when Simon didn't return home for several days.

Police searched the area with K-9s but never found Simon. It's not clear how he died or ended up in the water.

"Today, we express our condolences to the Simon family who, along with the Police, valiantly attempted to search for Simon with friends and families from the Guatemalan community," the Stamford Police Department said in a statement Monday evening.

Authorities are investigating Simon's death and asking anyone with information to call the detective bureau. All information will remain confidential.

From students to teachers, about two dozen people competed for a chance to sing in "The Manchester Voice" concert.

Chemistry teacher Greg Sember is among the competitors. He took the statge in front of students and judges Monday.

“It’s actually still nerve-wracking – even though I’m 27, older than the high school kids – still really nerve-wracking to get up there trying to sing in front of everybody,” said Sember.

High school junior Maisha Seraj also competed. She sang a song she wrote herself.

The contestants sang for a panel of three judges, including Noah Lis, who competed on season six of NBC’s "The Voice."

The judges will have to narrow the field down to about seven.

The winners will perform along with Lis and two other recent contestants from "The Voice" at a concert May 4.

"Sometimes it just takes one person to believe in you or one big opportunity to really spark an interest in music," said Lis.

"The Manchester Voice" is a fundriaser for the Manchester Band.

Testing the political clout of the community and more than 1,700 employees, Bristol Hospital has launched a campaign to dismiss the governor's proposed cuts and tax increases that leave the hospital in danger of shutting down.

"We just think that we're being disproportionately affected by this budget," said Kurt Barwis, the president and CEO of Bristol Hospital.

A pop-up on the hospital's website warns the hospital will be bankrupt in three to five years, and "Your voice matters!"

It directs emails to state legislators and Bristol's members of Congress.

"They've written, I think, over 600 emails at this point," said Barwis, "and we heard from legislators that they're getting these emails."

At 3.9 percent, Barwis said no hospital in Connecticut suffers a deeper cut as a percentage of its revenue under the governor's proposed budget than Bristol Hospital.

He blames a combination of cuts in what the government pays hospitals for treating Medicaid patients, and state tax increases on hospitals that in theory are reimbursed but in practice are devoted to the state government's budget.

"I'm not saying these are ideal cuts at all," said Gov. Dan Malloy. "But we don't have another half billion dollars to spend."

Three of Bristol's four state legislators are Republicans, while Democrats run the legislature and the governor is a Democrat.

Eight students and one faculty member at a Manchester church fell ill Monday afternoon after fumes from a chemical used during maintenance work got into the building's ventilation system, according to the fire department.

Fire officials said they were called to the Church of Nazarene at 218 Main Street around 12:20 p.m.

A maintenance worker had sprayed a lubricant that created a strong odor, then sprayed air freshener in an effort to cover it up. That only made the smell worse, and fumes spread through the building, according to the fire department.

Two hundred students and faculty members moved from the school section of the building to the auditorium in hopes of escaping the smell, which was initially suspected to be carbon monoxide.

Fire officials said eight students felt sick and were treated at the church, then sent home with their parents. One faculty member was taken to Manchester Memorial Hospital.

Crews from the Manchester Fire Department ventilated the building, while the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection checked the building. Emergency responders cleared the scene at 1:20 p.m.

East Haven police have arrested the 27-year-old man who they say tried to stab his brother with a hunting knife, then grabbed a shotgun and chased him out of the house before running from police Monday morning.

Edward Clement, 27, is accused of punching, choking and kicking his brother at a home on Glenmoor Drive early Monday. Police said Clement tried to stab his brother and chased him with a shotgun as the victim ran to a neighbor's house for help.

Residents called authorities around 3:30 a.m. Monday when they heard the commotion and looked outside to see a man in the street with a gun, according to police.

Clement ran when he heard sirens and dropped the shotgun in a nearby driveway. Police said another neighbor found Clement's jacket in the back of his pickup truck.

Police brought in K-9 units and a Stratford police helicopter to search for him and asked neighbors to stay in their homes.

Neighbors spotted Clement walking near Glenmoor Drive around 3:50 p.m. and called police, who took him into custody.

He was charged with disorderly conduct, third-degree assault, first-degree reckless endangerment, theft of a firearm, second-degree strangulation, carrying a dangerous weapon, criminal possession of a firearm and criminal attempt at first-degree assault. Clement is being held on $250,000 bond.

Police said Clement's brother was hospitalized for treatment of non-life threatening injuries and has since been released. It's not clear what prompted the fight between the two.

Ronald Gaudino, of East Haven, said that an incident like the one Monday morning is unexpected in the area. which he describes as a "very quiet neighborhood."

Neighbor Ann Zacks said she knows Clement and his brother.

"It is surprising, yes, because they seemed like nice kids. They really do," she said.

A former Milford, Connecticut, student accused of stabbing and killing a classmate in a high school stairwell last spring is pleading not guilty by reason of insanity, according to his attorney.

Christopher Plaskon, 17, has been charged with murder in the stabbing death of Maren Sanchez at Jonathan Law High School hours before the school prom last April.

Although authorities have been tight lipped about a potential motive, classmates speculated that Plaskon might have been angry that Sanchez turned down his invitation to go to prom together.

Plaskon, who is being tried as an adult, pleaded not guilty last June despite allegedly telling police, "I did it. Just arrest me." He underwent a psychological evaluation that wrapped up in January.

According to documents released by defense attorney Richard Meehan, Plaskon will "rely on the affirmative defense that at the time of the alleged commission of the offense, he was suffering from a mental disease or defect and/or extreme emotional disturbance."

Plaskon waived a trial by jury and will instead go before a three-judge panel.

A motion filed in court ahead of Tuesday's status proceedings says the defense team plans to "introduce expert testimony relating to the affirmative defense of mental disease or defect and/or extreme emotional disturbance and/or another condition bearing on the issue of whether he had the requisite mental state for the offense charged."

Plaskon is being held at the Manson Youth Institute in Cheshire, a correctional facility for boys and young men ages 12 to 19.

Police are searching for the man who robbed a First Niagara Bank in East Haven on Monday afternoon.

According to police, a man in his 30s standing between 5 feet 9 and 6 feet tall entered the bank at 50 Frontage Road around 2:30 p.m. and stole an undisclosed amount of money.

He was last seen on foot on Kimberly Avenue.

Police said the robber was wearing a black windbreaker, black knitted hat and jeans.

Anyone with information is urged to call East Haven police at 203-468-3820.

The same day Connecticut College held a campus-wide discussion about racism and hate-related issues on campus, a staff member received a threatening phone call, prompting police to send students a safety alert.

Campus police said in the alert the threat "may be related to a previous phone call, as well a as verbal confrontation in Crozier-Williams," the building where just yesterday, racially charged graffiti was found inked on a bathroom wall.

According to the alert sent out at 7:48 p.m. Monday, police are searching for a bald man in his 50s who has been spotted on campus walking a black dog with a red harness.

Police said a security guard will be stationed at the Crozier-Williams building indefinitely.

It's not clear whether Monday evening's incident is linked to the bathroom graffiti. Police are investigating and urged anyone with information to come forward.

The alert was sent less than an hour after college president Katherine Bergeron was scheduled to lead a discussion about strengthening the college community and fostering an atmosphere of tolerance.

Students have also been up in arms over a philosophy professor's provocative Facebook post comparing Gaza to a pit bull in a cage. More than 500 people signed a petition calling on Bergeron to hold the professor accountable.

Concern is mounting in Ansonia after residents reported more coyote sightings in the days after a dog was attacked outside his home.

Animal control said a coyote was spotted Monday morning on Benz Street.

Some neighbors said they were not surprised.

"That leads to the nature center so that’s where all the land is and that’s where they come out of at night," said Ansonia resident Mike Mairano. "So if you had a cat or something, I’d be scared."

Less than a week go, two coyotes chased and attacked a 5-year-old pit bull named Lexus in his yard on Park Place. Surveillance footage captured the incident. Fortunately, Lexus is recovering well.

"Attacks on pets are not new," explained Chris Vann, a wildlife biologist at the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

After a rough winter, coyotes are hungry and liable to become more aggressive. Experts are advising residents to keep their pets inside at night.

"If you are going out at night, leash them at all times. Be aware if you possibly see a coyote in the shadows, calmly go inside, get your pet indoors," said Vann.

The Ansonia Animal Shelter is also reminding pet owners to keep their animals' rabies vaccines up to date.

Officials with DEEP said coyote attacks on people are rare.

To whoever has been pooping on the public bike path in Hampton, Illinois – please stop, officials have asked.

“Stop pooping on bike path,” read two new signs along the trail. And no, it’s not a message directed towards pets.

Apparently joggers who poop along the path have been an increasing problem for Hampton over the past two years, the city’s Public Works supervisor Scott McKay told WQAD.

“It’s just pretty nasty to talk about,” McKay told the outlet.

But how is he so sure it is humans causing the mess, you may ask?

“Well animals don’t carry toilet paper and then stuff it on the top,” he said in the same interview, adding that the person doing the dirty work leaves the same tracks each time.

“It’s gross and other people shouldn’t have to use our path like that," McKay said to the publication.

So now he's taken matters into his own hands. In case the runners were under the guise that it was okay to use Mother Nature’s open roadways as their personal toilet, they now have a friendly reminder educating them otherwise.

McKay said he hopes the signs solve the problem.

The first Monday for the nine-mile-long strip of concrete commonly known as the CTfastrak is in the books, and commuters say they enjoyed the ride.

"I come from Waterbury," said Mike Minutillo, whose commute took him partly on Interstate 84, then onto the new route from New Britain. "It looked great, yeah, it looked great."

Authorities have declined to reveal how many passengers used the service until the automatic counters aboard the buses are verified.

One passenger got on a CTfastrak bus to Hartford at Westfarms Mall by mistake but said she didn't mind.

"It was fast," said Najae Hankerson, who said she'd ride it again on purpose. "It was convenient, very easy."

"That's what we want to hear," said Department of Transportation Commissioner James Redeker, who was meeting passengers at the Flatbush Avenue station in West Hartford.

"And to me, a couple good words will spread the word to other people and we want people to hear enough to give it a try, because I think they're going to like it," Redeker added.

One Newington man who gave it a trial run said he liked it.

"It was good, because no traffic, obviously, so it was a smooth ride," said William Zinkerman.
 

He's remembered as a kind, loving, peaceful man.

Monday night dozens gathered to honor Jose Araujo, known as the "gentle giant," at the place he died.

"I love you and thanks for always being there when I needed someone," said 15-year-old Milani Gray.

Candles brightened a small corner of Bridgeport at Pond Street and Chopsey Hill Road as friends and family mourned Araujo's death and tried to make sense of the senseless.

Last week, 33-year-old Gregory Weathers asked for a job at a construction site where Araujo was working. According to police, Weathers left when the foreman directed him to the company office, then came back shooting.

"I hope one day I will find it in my heart to forgive [Weathers], but right now I'm just dealing with the loss," said Milani's mom and Araujo's girlfriend, Analia Gray.

Gray broke down as she laid down candles and flowers at Monday night's vigil. She described 30-year-old Araujo as the love of her life and said his 5-year-old son is still asking for his dad.

"He was such a good person. He didn't deserve to go that way," said Gray. "We're just trying to put the pieces together and figure out how we're going to go on."

It's a question no one knows how to answer, and although Araujo himself is now just a memory, that memory will live on.

"I would have enjoyed a lifetime with him, but he will forever live in my heart," said Gray.

"I'm going to miss him a lot, and he's always going to be in my heart. He was a very kind man," said Araujo's 10-year-old niece, Nikki Dagraca.

Calling hours will be held 4-8 p.m. Tuesday at the Parente-Lauro Funeral Home in Bridgeport at 559 Washington Avenue in Bridgeport.

The funeral will be held 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Augustine Cathedral at 359 Washington Avenue.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to pay for funeral costs and help Araujo's 5-year-old son.

A mother has been charged with endangering her 7-year-old daughter after getting drunk and leaving her "hiding" in a trash bin overnight in a "high crime" area, Dallas police say.

Dallas police said 28-year-old Alicia Carroll called them Sunday morning alleging the person she left her daughter with Saturday night refused to return her.

Carroll told police she left the King Spa and Sauna on Royal Lane to clear her head at about 10 p.m., leaving her child inside with an acquaintance. A spa employee told NBC 5 that Carroll was drunk when she, along with her daughter, left a party at the spa Saturday night.

After the call Sunday morning, Dallas police began searching for Carroll's daughter by air and ground. The young girl wasn't found until about 11:15 a.m. when two passers-by flagged down an officer and asked if they were looking for a small black girl in a yellow shirt and shorts.

With the tip, officers quickly found the missing girl, describing her condition as hungry and thirsty, filthy, wearing no shoes and suffering from several cuts and scrapes to her arms and legs.

The girl told police she and her mother left the spa and were walking down the street when her mother started running. The girl said her mother told her they were being followed by the police and that they would have to hide.

Police said Carroll helped her child into the trash bin and then left her there alone in a "high crime area ... by a creek and wooded area." The child eventually fell asleep in the trash bin and woke up about 10 hours later. After exiting the bin, she began walking down Royal Lane toward the spa.

Carroll later admitted to police that she became intoxicated after having two vodka drinks in the parking lot and didn't remember much after that until the next morning when she couldn't locate her daughter. Police said Carroll also eventually remembered leaving the spa with her child and that they had been talking about the day, but then couldn't remember anything else.

The child was taken to a nearby hospital for an evaluation and then released to a family member, according to police. Child Protective Services was notified.

Police said they arrested Carroll Sunday afternoon and charged her with endangering a child. She is being held on $25,000 bond.

Carroll works as a daycare teacher, according to Dallas police.

Carroll's sister and neighbor both tell NBC 5 she is a good mother who loves her daughter very much. The family had no explanation for what occurred Saturday night. They would also not go on camera.

As of Monday evening, there was no attorney information listed for Carroll.

NBC 5's Todd L. Davis and Ray Villeda contributed to this report.

Bond for a nanny accused of deliberately burning a 3-year-old girl she was supposed to be caring for has been set at $1 million.

When the mother returned to her Danbury, Connecticut, home after work on Friday, the nanny explained the second-degree burns on the little girl’s hands and leg by saying she was tending to the other children when the little girl accidentally touched the hot stove, police said.

After taking her daughter to the doctor, the mother watched footage from the hidden nanny camera she had recently installed and saw that the nanny intentionally inflicted the child’s injuries, police said.

Police responded to the home around 9:30 p.m. on Friday after the mother called police, then went to the Danbury home of the nanny, Lidia Quilligana, 31, and arrested her.

Quilligana was charged with first-degree assault, risk of injury to a minor and third-degree criminal mischief and held on a $100,000 bond. 

When she appeared in court on Monday, Quilligana's attorney said her client is a mother of two with no criminal record and there had been no prior complaints in the year she has watched the child.

She then asked that bond remain at $10,000, but the prosecution argued that the child's mother was suspicious enough at some point to install a hidden camera and the judge increased bond to $1 million

It was continued on Monday and Quilligana is due back in court on April 22.

If Quilligana is able to post bond, she will have to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet and surrender her passport.

The case has been referred to the special victims unit to follow up.
 

A 36-year-old father accused of abusing his 3-month-old daughter threw the little girl against a wall because he was upset over her crying, according to police.

The baby,  who family members identified as Victoria Tarkowski, suffered six skull fractures and a fractured wrist.

Tarkowski, 36, of South Main Street in the Moosup section of Plainfield, was arrested on Saturday morning and the baby's grandather identified Tarkowski as the father.

Police said they went to investigate over the weekend because they received a call from a family member after the child's mother returned home from the methadone clinic in Norwich and found a bruise on her daughter's head. 

The child's mother said Tarkowski "lost it" because the baby was crying and threw her against the wall, according to the arrest warrant application.

When the mother asked Tarkowski what happened, he said he was tired, did not get any sleep and wanted to rip the baby's head off, police said. He then wrapped the child in a blanket and threw her against the wall, according to police.

The mother then asked Tarkowski if he knew he could have killed the baby and he said it's not a good idea for him to watch her when he is exhausted.

"If I wanted to kill her, I would have snapped her (expletive) neck and throw(n) her in a dumpster," Robert P. Tarkowski told the baby's mother when she was questioning what happened, according to police.

When Tarkowski spoke to police, he said he was sleeping and woke up because the little girl was crying, so he went into the bedroom and found the baby on the floor.

He told investigators she fell off the bed, but could not account for all of the baby's fractures.

When police questioned him further, Tarkowski asked for an attorney, police said.

The little girl was taken to Windham Hospital in Willimantic, then transferred to Connecticut Children's Medial Center in Hartford, but she has since been released to other family members.

Family members also told police that Tarkowski admitted to being "rough" with the baby and said he wanted to kill himself.

Police said they searched Tarkowski's home on Friday and arrested him Saturday morning at 14 Miller Road in Sterling. He was charged with first-degree assault, risk of injury to a minor and reckless endangerment and appeared at Danielson Superior Court on March 30, where bond was set at $300,000.

A protective order was issued for the victim and Tarkowski is due back in court on May 1.

 A “swatting” incident led to police closing a Greenwich street for more than an hour on Monday.

Dispatchers received two calls around 6 p.m. with false reported about a violent domestic incident with hostages being taken at River Landing Condominiums.

The first call lacked some credibility, but officers were sent to investigate, police said.

River Road was closed between East Putnam Avenue and Robertson Lane during the investigation and police believe the reports were a hoax. Where the call was made from is not clear.

The Greenwich Police Department is investigating and trying to identify the people responsible.