Cat killer gets 15 months' jail

KUALA LUMPUR: A 28-year-old man was sentenced to 15 months' in jail by the Sessions Court here for torturing a cat, which resulted in its death.

Judge Rohatul Akmar Abdullah meted out the sentence on Al Azri Norhisham after he admitted to committing the offence at Jalan 4/27A, Section 2, Wangsa Maju, at about 1.30pm on Monday (June 10).

He was charged under Section 29 1(e) of the Animal Welfare Act 2015 which carries a fine of between RM20,000 and RM100,000 or a prison sentence of up to three years or both upon conviction.

Earlier, Al Azri, who was unrepresented, told the court that the cat had scratched and bitten him.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Siti Hajar Mohd Ashif asked for the court to mete out a deterrent sentence on grounds that the accused had committed a cruel act on an animal.

She also informed the court that a video clip of the killing had gone viral on social media.

"This is a criminal act and an act of cruelty on a living creature. If compared with the accused who can use his intellect and act in a sane manner, he should have known not to do that to a defenceless animal," said Siti Hajar.

According to the statement of facts, Al Azri was detained at Section 2, Wangsa Maju, at around 1.30pm on June 12.

It was reported that the cat's owner discovered his pet's body at around 2.30pm on Monday (June 10).

The owner, who initially thought his cat, called Jebon, had been poisoned, then buried it behind his house.

He only found out that Jebon was abused after a neighbour showed CCTV footage of a man tying a rope around Jebon's neck and hanging it at the staircase of the apartment building.