KYODO NEWS - Feb 25, 2019 - 13:56 | All, Japan

A 29-year-old man who admitted to having killed cats with poison near Tokyo last November said he was driven by his long-standing hatred of the animal.

"I always disliked cats," the man living in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, was quoted as saying by police, as he was referred to prosecutors Monday for alleged violation of the animal protection law.

The man is suspected of killing three cats by placing poisoned cat food on the riverbed of Sagami River on Nov. 17 and 24.



(File photo)

[Anadolu Agency/Getty/Kyodo]

A total of five cats were found dead in the area in the same month, along with cat food which contained methomyl, a powerful insecticide.

The man emerged as a suspect after police tracked an online message board post that read, "I killed a cat with poisoned food."

The police searched his home in January and found images on his computer and smartphone of cats that ate the poisoned food, investigators said.

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