Conn. landlord accused of killing cat over $25 fee

[August 05, 2009]  BANTAM, Conn. (AP) -- A Connecticut landlord has been accused of using a pellet gun to kill a cat on his property because the tenant didn't pay a $25 fee for it.

Tenant John Schaiver says landlord Paul Milton shot the tenant's brother's cat July 11 and hit it repeatedly with a garden shovel while it was flopping around on the porch.

The landlord was arrested July 26. He faces an animal cruelty charge.

Torrington police say the tenant told them the landlord had been shooting squirrels for weeks.

A police report says that when the tenant asked his landlord why he shot the cat, the landlord replied that an extra $25 for the cat to be on the property hadn't been paid.

The landlord denies harming the cat. He's free on $1,000 bond. He's due in Bantam Superior Court on Aug. 25.

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Information from: The Register Citizen, http://www.registercitizen.com/

[Associated Press]

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