A 10-year-old boy who hurled a helpless cat off the top floor of an apartment block has been let off with a one-month course on how to care for animals.
Chilling CCTV footage shows the boy chasing the black 15-year-old moggie – called Panther – out of a lift as it reaches the top floor of the block in Singapore.
As he grabs him, the elderly puss barely struggles while the boy looks around apparently to check for witnesses.
Seconds later, the lad throws the cat over railings to die from the 300-foot fall on 14th December last year.
Within moments, a sickening thud is heard as the cat hits the ground.
Panther – reported local media – was a stray that had been cared for by several residents of the block, where it was much loved.
The boy had denied killing the cat until a caretaker confronted him and his family with the CCTV footage.
He then claimed he had carried out the sick act because he was frustrated at his family for not looking after him properly.
At the time, it was feared he might get away unpunished because he was only just over Singapore’s minimum age of criminal responsibility.
Local media now report that he was ordered to go on a one-month animal welfare programme run by the Animal & Veterinary Service.
On the course, he was taught how to care for animals, what to do to keep them healthy, welfare, and why hurting them is wrong.
Officials had consulted psychiatrists, the boy’s parents, and his school before sending him on the programme.
One psychiatrist from the Institute of Mental Health had ruled that the boy was not mature enough to fully understand the consequences of his actions.
The boy completed the programme, which was held, in part, at a cat shelter, in June. It involved him feeding, handling, and grooming cats.
At the end of the programme, the boy expressed remorse for having killed Panther and said he would not do anything like that again, local media report.
Jessica Kwok of the Animal & Veterinary Service told local media: “AVS assessed that the boy had completed the programme satisfactorily and is now able to understand better why his actions were wrong.”
Under Singaporean law, adults who commit acts of animal cruelty can face a fine of up to SGP 15,000 (GBP 8,800) and/or a jail sentence of up to 18 months.
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