Man Arrested for Allegedly Catching Cats with Cage Traps, Drowning Them in River

The Yomiuri Shimbun

16:04 JST, June 24, 2024

A farmer in Yukuhashi, Fukuoka Prefecture, was arrested for allegedly catching cats with cage traps and drowning them in a river, police announced on Monday.

Authorities said that the 66-year-old man told them that he killed about 60 animals including cats over about two years until March of this year.

The man is suspected of setting a cage trap in a farm equipment warehouse near his house in February and March, drowning six cats he caught in the trap by sinking them in the river in the city and dumping them in the area along with the carcass of a raccoon.

According to police, they have found the carcasses of a total of 36 cats, raccoons and weasels in the river area, after a report from a local resident to a prefectural police office in February.

The police identified the suspect from security camera footage in the area, among other evidence, and seized three cage traps from his home and other locations.

According to police, the man admitted the charges and told police that he was troubled by the stench of cat excrement and crop damage caused by raccoons. The man was released after his arrest.