Over the recent Valentine’s weekend, a private housing estate in Hong Kong became the scene of grisly animal abuse. A total of 29 animals ranging from cats to chinchillas and rabbits were found either dead or wounded, scattered along the walkway and a slope.
Police showed up at the Hong Kong Garden housing estate, located in the New Territories, at around 1 p.m. on February 14, after a security guard made the horrific discovery.
Videos by VICE
Of the initial count of 25 animals that were apparently flung off a fifth-floor residential unit that day, 15 died at the scene. The animals that didn’t make it included chinchillas, rabbits, a guinea pig, a cat, a parrot, and a rodent. Their bodies were passed over to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department for autopsy to determine the specific cause of death.
The 10 pets who managed to survive the initial drop were sent to a clinic at the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA). It is unclear if they will recover from their injuries.
During the next two days, another four cats were found injured on a slope in the same area, bringing the total pet count to 29.
Preliminary findings suggest that the animals sustained their injuries after falling from a residential unit in the estate’s block 19. Most of them suffered bone fractures from the plunge, but did not appear to have been tortured in other ways, HK01 reported.
According to the South China Morning Post, the police raided the suspected residential unit and found evidence indicating that the animals were housed there as pets before they met their tragic fates. Two out of three bedrooms in the apartment seemed to be previously occupied by pets, but the house no longer contained any animals when the police arrived. The flat owner was also absent during the police raid.
On the evening of Monday, February 17, a 49-year-old man was detained when he arrived at the Tsuen Wan Police Station with his lawyer to turn himself in for hurling the animals from his fifth-floor window. The next evening, a 36-year-old man who allegedly lived with the suspect was also arrested in relation to the case.
Police are still investigating the motive for this act of cruelty. It’s possible that the perpetrators threw their pets out in a fit of rage during a heated couples argument on Valentine’s Day, Apple Daily reported. If convicted of cruelty to animals, they could face a three-year sentence and a HK$200,000 ($25,700) fine.
Find Koh Ewe on Instagram.
