SEOUL: A man in his 20s was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for two years, for breaking into his former girlfriend’s home and beating her cat to death after the animal scratched him.
The Suwon District Court found the man guilty of home invasion, property damage and violating the Animal Protection Act. It also ordered him to perform 80 hours of community service.
The man broke into his former girlfriend’s home in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, in August, while she was away.
After her cat scratched him, he became angry and threw the animal onto a bed, according to the court.
He then tried to wash his blood off the cat in a sink. When the cat continued to struggle, he became more enraged and beat it to death.
“Entering the victim’s home without permission and cruelly killing her pet cat is condemnable in both nature and method,” the court said in its ruling.
“The victim suffered substantial emotional pain and has not forgiven the defendant.”
The court said it considered the man’s lack of prior criminal record and his expression of remorse in handing down the suspended sentence. - The Korea Herald/ANN
