A young man and a young girl aged 17 were sentenced to respective sentences of one year and nine months of detention on Monday for having tortured and killed two kittens, found in a wooded area in northwestern London.
Investigators found notes on the young man’s phone signaling his desire to kill.
“I really wanted to kill someone. I did research every day to find out how to escape justice after committing murder, ”he was written. “I went near. I killed cats to reduce my impulses. I skinned, strangled and stabbed cats ”.
It was “undoubtedly the offenses committed against the most horrible animals that I have ever seen in this court,” commented the judge of the London court of Highbury who pronounced the penalties.
The dead kittens were found by a passer -by on May 3 in Ruislip, a wooded suburb of London. One of the two was suspended from a tree by a rope, completely ripped, exorbited eyes, while the other lay on the ground, strings tied to the body.
Pieces of flesh and fur seemed to have been burned. Knives, scissors and torches were found on the scene.
The girl had published a message on an announcement site to buy three kittens. In the months preceding the facts, this teenager whose personality was described as “Borderline”, had downloaded images of mutilated kittens.
The judge, Hina Rai, stressed that the acts of the duo were “clearly premeditated”.
“We do not clearly know who has taken the initiative, but from what I know, you are both equally managed,” she said, addressing the girl.
To the young man, she said, “You said you were sorry during your interrogation (by the police), but the reports also show that you have trouble showing empathy”.
According to the BBC, British police are investigating possible links with an international video sharing network showing kittens to be tortured and killing.
The British RSPCA animal protection organization indicated to AFP that it has recorded between 2021 and 2024 an increase of 42% of the reports of cruelty acts committed against cats, from 1,435 to 2,041.
The RSPCA also says it has noted a 27% increase in cases reported in cruelty to animals broadcast on social networks since the start of the year (133 against 104 over the same period in 2024).
