The RCMP has arrested a 20-year-old man after a disturbing incident involving an animal was posted on social media in which a cat was allegedly drugged, shaved, bleached and thrown out a window in B.C.鈥檚 Cowichan Valley.
According to court documents obtained by CTV Vancouver Island, Joshua Lemire has been charged with one count of causing unnecessary pain or suffering to an animal.
鈥�(F)urther charges are being considered on other youth who were involved,鈥� Cpl. Tammy Douglas of the RCMP .
The disturbing incident came to light in a series of videos and images posted to Snapchat, a social media app. In an interview with CTV Vancouver Island, Sharline Haglund said the images and videos of the alleged abuse of her family鈥檚 cat were sent to her daughter by former friends early Tuesday morning.
鈥淵our cat loves molly,鈥� part of one of the image鈥檚 captions reads, referring to a party drug more commonly known as MDMA or ecstasy. In another image, the cat has the numbers 鈥�666鈥� scrawled on its ear. The assailants also allegedly threw the cat out a window, Haglund said.
Gigi, the one-year-old cat, was missing for most of the day Tuesday. When it was finally found later that night, it also appeared to have bleach marks on its back. Haglund says she took the cat to a veterinarian Wednesday morning where the animal tested positive for MDMA.
Amidst public outcry over the alleged animal abuse, the RCMP is urging people 鈥渢o let the police complete the investigation and respect the judicial process.鈥�
鈥淲e are always concerned when people decide to bypass law enforcement and take matters into their own hands,鈥� Douglas said. 鈥淎lthough we can appreciate that this matter has upset many people, vigilantism will not be tolerated.鈥�
According to the RCMP, the SPCA is also involved in the case.
With a report from CTV Vancouver Island
