‘Cat kicker’ in video circulating online has been arrested, cops say
Culled from The Sacramento Bee
The video captured a man from the waist down as he ran up to a small orange cat and kicked the animal as if it were a football. That sent the cat flying into the air and out of the frame, before it comes crashing down onto the pavement, landing on its back. Then the cat clambers back to its feet, video shows, The Sacramento Bee reported.
The footage was first posted on Instagram, where it quickly sparked indignation, police said.
Animal cruelty officers who investigated figured out that the abuse happened on July 1 outside a Chevron gas station in southwest Atlanta.
“It was pretty disturbing to watch,” said Lisa Bender of the Atlanta Police Department, according to WXIA.
“And it’s been proven people who are violent toward animals are typically violent toward people.”
After the video went wild on social media, Atlanta authorities shared the footage online as well with an appeal for help to find the culprits — both the man who kicked the cat, and whoever filmed the video. A $2,000 reward was offered for tips that helped lead to an arrest.
And sharing the video paid off: Jamari Davenport, 22, has turned himself in at the Fulton County jail in connection with the incident, Atlanta police announced Wednesday.
Davenport faces a misdemeanor charge of cruelty to animals, police said.
Surveillance footage from the gas station was also shared with the public, and that captured the perpetrator’s face, video shows.
Police said tips from the public were instrumental in the arrest.
The bad news is that authorities haven’t found the cat in the video yet, which means police don’t know how badly the animal was hurt.
Jail records said Davenport’s bond is set at $3,000, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports.