SHARE
COPY LINK

TORTURE

Online threats against teen cat killer

The 16-year-old who admitted to torturing and killing cats in Gothenburg is being hounded on the internet, with threats directed at the teenager and his family on forums like Flashback, which was also instrumental in the police investigation.

Online threats against teen cat killer

Newspaper Dagens Nyheter (DN) reported that several hateful and threatening remarks have been posted on Flashback and other social media sites.

“Expect a visit BASTARD!” and “I hope he will suffer a lot until the day he ends up in hell” were among the comments on the Flashback thread, which were subsequently erased on Saturday.

Another online commenter asked if one would be convicted over incitement for writing “Authentic images of [the suspect] with a ripped-open stomach wanted: 150k”.

The 16-year-old was arrested on Thursday on suspicion of killing nine pet cats in the Gothenburg area. He admitted to the crimes during questioning.

As police had suspected, the teenager lived in the residential area where the cat killings occurred. Some cats had their stomachs ripped open and one was found hanging from a tree.

The 16-year-old is suspected of animal cruelty stretching back as far as November 2011, and which was carried out up until as recently as Wednesday when a cat was found dead outside its owner’s home.

A cat was also found dead behind a grocery store in the Gothenburg area as far back as 2008, but no arrests were made then.

The 16-year-old’s lawyer Göran Franzén told DN that he was unaware of the online threats directed at his client.

“This is news to me and I spoke to both him and his relatives as late as Friday evening and it was not mentioned then,” said Franzén.

The police investigating the pet killings received help from a group of cat lovers who organized themselves after meeting online on the Flashback forum.

According to information provided by the group, two cats were also found dead in 2009 and 2010, about a year before the time period covered by the preliminary investigation.

The 16-year-old has no criminal record. Due to his young age he was not detained but was taken into care at a youth home.

TT/The Local/nr

Follow The Local on Twitter

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

CAT

Spain records first case of cat contracting coronavirus

Spain has confirmed its first case of a cat contracting Covid-19 in news that will spark alarm among cat owners everywhere.

Spain records first case of cat contracting coronavirus
Photo by Ricardo Avelar on Unsplash

Post-mortem testing on Negrito, a four-year-old cat that was euthanized after being taken to the vet suffering from severe heart disease, revealed that the feline was a victim of the coronavirus.

La Vanguardia newspaper reported that the owner of the cat had died from the virus and that several other people in the household had also been taken ill.

The cat suffered from a pre-existing medical condition quite common in felines known as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

He was admitted to an emergency animal hospital with breathing difficulties, a high temperature of 38.2C and heart failure where it was determined that he should be euthanized.

An autopsy performed by Barcelona’s Centre for Research into Animal Health (IRTA-CReSA) detected SARS-CoV-2 virus from samples taken from the cat’s nose and digestive tract.

“The viral load was low and none of the lesions he presented were compatible with the infection caused by the virus. The cat was already suffering from cardiomyopathy and later became infected with SARS-CoV-2, ”said Joaquim Segales, a researcher at the CReSA and professor at the Autonomous University of Barcelona.  

 “He is a collateral victim of the disease in humans,” he added.

It is not the first time a cat is known to have contracted the coronavirus from humans. So far five other pet cats around the world have reportedly tested positive  as well as a group of eight lions and tigers at New York’s Bronx Zoo.

But in all other cases the animals have shown only mild symptoms of respiratory disease and have recovered without problems.

Compared to the nearly four million confirmed cases of people infected with coronavirus worldwide infected, the number of animals with the virus is very small and Natàlia Majó, director of CReSA-IRTA urged pet owners not to be too worried. 

“The likelihood of a person infecting a cat is extremely low,” she told La Vanguardia.

Scientists say it is extremely unlikely that cats or dogs could pass the virus onto humans but the general advice is to avoid contact with pets from outside your own household and to wash your hands if you do so. 

The RSPCA advises people that it is best avoid kissing your pet, just in case.

READ MORE: 

SHOW COMMENTS