Teenager 'killed kitten by drop-kicking it like a rugby ball over a distance of 40ft'

Last updated at 8:39 PM on 21st June 2011

Victim: A teenager is accused of drop-kicking a black kitten, like the one pictured, a distance of 40ft

A teenager has been charged over the death of a kitten which he allegedly drop-kicked 'like a rugby ball' - a distance of 40ft.

The 16-year-old is accused of causing criminal damage to the four-month-old black kitten.

Devastated owner Julie Duke, 45, said her daughter Tia, seven, had been in floods of tears since the incident.

She told how a horrified neighbour saw a teenage boy handling the beloved pet, called Tasmin, before he apparently took a running punt and booted her into the air.

The neighbour then alerted Julie who then found the stricken animal lying in a crumpled heap in the gutter.

Little Tia of Plymouth, Devon, said: 'I know that Tasmin is dead and it's too late for her but I just want these people to be caught so they won't do it to any other animals.'

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She added: 'She was so important to me and I loved her very much and I have been left very upset by what has happened.'

Tia's mum Julie, who works as a meal time assistant at a local school, bought the cat for Tia as a Christmas present.

Devon and Cornwall police branded those responsible for the attack - which happened in March this year - as 'sick and cruel'.

A spokesman added: 'Officers were called to an address after a resident saw a young man 'pick up a cat and drop kick it into the air as if it were a rugby ball'.

'The witness heard the cat screech and land about 40 feet away.

'This was a sick and cruel attack on a defenceless animal and somebody's much loved pet.'

The 16-year-old was charged on Monday and will face magistrates at a hearing next week at Plymouth Youth Court.

Devon: A teenager has been charged over the death of a kitten which he allegedly drop-kicked 'like a rugby ball' in Plymouth

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Selasa, 21 Juni 2011