Man accused of eating LSU student's pet fish, arrested two years later

WBRZ

BATON ROUGE - Police have arrested a man Tuesday after he allegedly ate someone's pet inside an LSU dorm more than two years ago.

According to an arrest warrant obtained by LSU police in 2016, the victim allowed her ex-boyfriend and two of his friends to stay at her dorm in Blake Hall on the weekend of the LSU-Ole Miss football game.

When the victim returned to her room after the game on Oct. 22, she allowed one of the men, Maxwell Taffin, inside to retrieve his belongings. As Taffin exited the room, he remarked to the victim that she should "check your fish tank" before hurrying out the door.

When the woman checked the tank, she noticed her pet fish was missing. She later showed police a photo she received from Taffin's phone following the encounter which showed feces in a toilet accompanied by the text "found your fish".

LSU police later spoke with Taffin, who was 18 years old at the time. Arrest records say he admitted to swallowing the victim's pet.

"Yeah, I'll be honest with you. I ate [the victim's] fish," said Taffin, according to an affidavit.

When asked about the image of feces sent to the victim, Taffin reportedly told police "a lot of people" use his phone because it isn't password-protected.

Taffin was asked to appear at LSUPD for a criminal summons but failed to do so.

Police finally arrested Taffin, who's now 21 years old, on Tuesday. He was booked on charges of cruelty to animals and improper telephone communications.