HOUSTON — A Houston man was arrested over the weekend and accused of torturing a newborn kitten until it died, the Houston SPCA says.
They say after the 3-week-old kitten was tortured, it was strangled.
David Arias was arrested by a Precinct 1 deputy in northwest Houston after the kitten was found buried the backyard.
A necropsy at the Houston SPCA confirmed the tiny kitten died a terrible death.
“When citizens step up to report cruelty, it helps us enforce the message that animal abuse crimes are not acceptable and there will be serious consequences for harming an animal in Harris County,” said Harris County Precinct 1 Constable Alan Rosen.
Experts warn these types of crimes should be taken seriously and reported because animal torture is often a gateway crime for violence against people.
According to a report by the Department of Justice, extreme animal torture cases “are almost always precursors to violent crime directed at humans.”
FBI research indicates that most serial killers, school shooters and mass murderers tortured animals as children, the DOJ says.
In 2016, they began tracking animal cruelty cases – including gross neglect, torture, organized abuse and sexual abuse – for their annual crime report. The FBI collects information from 18,000 city, county, state and federal law enforcement agencies.
“Law enforcement agencies and the advocacy groups that pushed for the inclusion in the FBI database are hoping the results will reveal a more complete picture of the nature of cruelty to animals,” according to a report on fbi.gov.
Report local cases of animal cruelty online at HoustonSPCA.org or call (713) 869-SPCA.
