They found a dog fighting ring, pit bulls, many of them dead and stuffed into garbage bags. The dogs that were alive and desperately needed help.
Eyewitness News saw a dog named Karma, rescued from the horrible existence.
"Her whole face was peeled away from bites and she has a chemical burn on her head," said Frannie Laurita.
Van Blarcom Street was a house of horrors, police say, for nearly 2 dozen dogs living in cages, released only to fight in a room in the home, its walls covered in blood.
Second chance rescue and other rescues and vet offices are now caring for the dogs.
Police arrested 21-year-old Caurie Swinger and 32-year-old Ashley Bryant.
Law enforcement officers got a tip from neighbors fearful and fed up with what looked like lots of drug activity.
"They're very dangerous, and I'm tired of them being in the hood," said one neighbor.
It seems no one on the street knew about the dogs, they were never in the yard, police say this dark basement.
They had kennels too small for their bodies that were their homes.
Several dead dogs were also found in trash bags in the house. The survivors are being rehabilitated because their true sparks were not lost even in the den of darkness.
The 2 suspects are being held in the Passaic County Jail on 24 counts including animal cruelty and drug charges.
