A 40-year-old man was arrested by the Public Security Police (PSP) on Friday in Vila Franca de Xira after being caught on surveillance cameras assaulting a cat at a commercial establishment.
In a statement on Saturday, the Lisbon Metropolitan Command of the PSP reported that officers became aware of an individual assaulting a cat and immediately proceeded to the location.
The officers spoke with a security guard who had observed, through the establishment’s parking lot surveillance cameras, an individual assaulting a cat, who had subsequently left the area.
The security guard directed the officers to where the individual had gone, and they encountered the suspect aggressively holding the cat, specifically by its front legs.
When approached by the police, the suspect placed the cat on an electricity box, claiming that the cat was his and about two months old. When asked why he assaulted the cat, he stated that he was carrying it on his shoulder, and it scratched him without warning.
The officers informed the suspect that the cat would be taken to the police department, prompting the suspect to react by suddenly grabbing the cat and throwing it against the side of a parked vehicle.
As a result, he was arrested for mistreatment of a companion animal.
The cat was handed over to the Vila Franca de Xira Animal Collection Center.
The detainee was released and notified to appear at the Public Prosecutor’s Office, Northern Lisbon District, Local Instance – Vila Franca de Xira.
It is noteworthy that the crime of mistreating a companion animal is punishable by up to one year in prison or a fine of up to 120 days. Currently, under the Penal Code, mistreatment crimes only include companion animals, defined as “any animal kept or intended to be kept by humans, particularly in their home, for entertainment and companionship purposes.”
