The organization, Humane Long Island, protested Tuesday outside the Town of Hempstead Town Hall. Animal advocates urgeed the town to deny a bid to privatize the town’s animal shelter.

The bidder, Billy Berman, is a business partner of Larry Wallach’s Sloth Encounters.

Humane Long Island says Berman’s pet drug store and Wallach’s Sloth Encounters had previously been expelled from Greater Good Charities’ Long Island Pet Rescue Bank for allegedly defrauding the charity.

The organization also says that from sponsoring Sloth Encounters, to partnering with wildlife traffickers and allegedly defrauding charity, Berman would spell disaster for animals at Hempstead's animal shelter.

They also say it would be a gross misuse of taxpayer money.

Other groups against the privatization are PETA and the Greater Good Charities’ Long Island Pet Rescue Bank.

The town says the bid was not up for a vote Tuesday despite the planned protest.

Statement from Steve Politi, Attorney for Larry Wallach: John Di Leonardo is a complete fabricator of information. He does not like Mr. Wallach and is making allegations out of personal anima. Nothing he says has any validity to it. Berman is not a partner of Wallach — they both maintain independent businesses and neither has done any wrongdoing. If Di Leonardo continues with these allegations -- he will find himself in a civil lawsuit.

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