COVINGTON, Ga. - A Covington woman is facing 73 charges of cruelty to animals after a complaint led Newton County Animal Control to investigate an unlicensed animal rescue. 

Elizabeth Warbington was running Paws for Hope Rescue. According to the Paws for Hope Facebook page, it is "dedicated to the well-being of kittens, ferals, abandoned cats and the occasional puppy or any other animal needing rescuing."

Newton County Public Information Officer Bryan Fazio said the investigation into Warbington started when animal control received a complaint from someone who purchased a cat from Paws for Hope. 

"After an investigation by Newton County Animal Control, it was noted that Warbington was operating the Paws for Hope Rescue without a Department of Agriculture License or a Newton County Business License," Fazio said. "After receiving an inspection warrant, Animal Control entered the property and found the cats were being housed in conditions with large amounts of accumulated excrement and appeared unsanitary."

Fazio said Warbington voluntarily surrendered all of the cats to Newton County Animal Control and faces a charge for each individual animal. 

"Warbington had previously been issued a stop order for selling cats and kittens from the Department of Agriculture," Fazio told The Covington News.