Nebraska man sentenced in animal cruelty case involving livestock

Larry E. Mikoloyck, 76, pleaded guilty to five counts of misdemeanor attempted abandonment or cruel neglect of livestock. As part of the plea deal, five counts of felony abandonment or cruel neglect of livestock were amended down and five more of the same counts were dropped.

More than 150 head of dead cattle were reported found by the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office in February. More than 1,000 were found on Mikoloyck’s Logan County ranch, many malnourished.

District Judge Michael Piccolo sentenced Mikoloyck to 18 months of probation, with the condition he not be allowed to have any non-domesticated animals in his custody at that time.

Deputy County Attorney Andrew Van Velson said Mikoloyck had a handful of sheep in his custody, and they worked out an arrangement where he had 28 days to make arrangements and remove the sheep off the property.

Matthew Mikoloyck, Larry Mikoloyck’s son, who also is charged in the case, will next appear in court Oct. 16.

According to court records, there were dead cattle lying in feeding areas with live cattle, creating a health concern over predators and disease on the Mikoloycks’ property.

There were numerous dead cattle located in a “large blow out that were too numerous to even count as they were piled on top of one another in multiple layers.”

Multiple area residents had told investigators that cattle escaped on an almost daily basis from the ranch.

Around that time, Nebraska State Patrol conducted a flyover and identified deceased cattle on the property. All but one water tank was frozen.

A section owned by Matthew Mikoloyck had a severed leg from a dead cow lying on the side of the road. It was documented and collected as evidence, court records say.

The report also said cattle appeared malnourished, with spines, hips and ribs showing through their winter hair.