RED ALERT! PETA Calls on Croydon Residents to Keep Cats Indoors

For Immediate Release:

28 January 2016

Contact:

Jennifer White +44 (0) 20 7837 6327, ext 222; [email protected]

RED ALERT! PETA CALLS ON CROYDON RESIDENTS TO KEEP CATS INDOORS

Group Issues New Warning as Five Animals Killed in Two Weeks

Croydon, South London – In just two weeks, five more animals have reportedly been slaughtered by the so-called “Cat Ripper of Croydon”, and PETA is responding with a red alert for the area calling on all residents to keep their cats indoors. More than 30 cats have been found dead over the last two years, and at least seven have been disembowelled or decapitated in recent months. Two of the recent victims were found decapitated near residential areas, while a fox was discovered with his stomach slit open alongside another fox’s tail on the same day. Two more cats – Leo and Louie – were found partially dismembered in two separate locations, also on the same day. PETA has offered a £5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrator, and celebrity supporters Dermot O’Leary, Caroline Flack, James McVey and Josh Franceschi have all pitched in, alerting their more than 6 million Twitter followers to PETA’s offer.

“As more defenceless animals die horrific deaths at the hands of this cruel individual, guardians must take action to protect their companion animals”, says PETA Associate Director Elisa Allen. “PETA is issuing a red alert to remind Croydon residents that cats are always safest inside, out of the reach of malicious criminals, disease, cars and many other dangers.”

As PETA – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way” – notes, history shows that past incidents involving cruelty to animals appear regularly in the records of serial rapists and murderers. Young killers Mary Bell, Robert Thompson and Jon Venables as well as serial murderers Ian Huntley, Thomas Hamilton (the Dunblane massacre), Fred West, Dennis Nilsen, Ian Brady and Raoul Moat all started out by deliberately harming animals. The best way to keep cats healthy and safe is to keep them inside at all times – with plenty of toys and catnip, a clean litter tray and an easily accessible cat scratcher

Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to contact the RSPCA on 0300 1234 999.

For more information about helping animals, please visit PETA.org.uk.

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