A man in Volusia County, Florida is facing a charge of animal cruelty after authorities say he beat a cat with a baseball bat, threw the animal down an embankment, and then beat it to death when the animal was crying.
Justin Gale, 28, was arrested by Port Orange officers on Tuesday, Fox35 reported.
Witnesses told responding officers that they spotted Gale and a woman standing outside a residence on Taylor Ave. Gale was seen hitting a cat with an 18-inch long bat, according to a charging affidavit, and then threw the animal down an embankment of a creek while it was wrapped in a jacket or bag.
According to police report, the cat was crying out and that’s when the woman with Gale told him to “put the cat out of its misery.” The report states that Gale walked back over to the cat and hit it three more times with the bat, then the two left on bicycles.
Witnesses called 911 and responding officers soon arrived at the home and found a bat with blood on the top and a white tank top covered in blood. Officers found the dead cat wrapped in a cheetah print jacket.
When officers made contact with Gale, he denied being in contact with the cat, the report states. A police investigator reportedly spoke to two witnesses who said Gale admitted to them that he had “put a cat out of its misery.” A witness also identified Gale as the person he saw beating the cat, police said.
Gale was arrested for animal cruelty and unlawful disposal of a dead domestic animal.
