The British woman at the centre of an internet hate campaign after being caught on camera dumping a cat into a rubbish bin says she is "profoundly sorry" for her actions.

Mary Bale, a 45-year-old bank worker, said she had been guilty of a "split second of misjudgment" when she put the cat in a wheelie bin after stroking it on a street in Coventry, central England.

The cat, Lola, was stuck in the bin for 15 hours but was discovered after her owners Darryl and Stephanie Mann heard her mewing.

They found out what happened after checking footage from a closed-circuit television camera which they had installed at their house after their car was repeatedly bumped by other vehicles.

A Facebook campaign has been launched against Ms Bale with some contributors even making death threats.

Earlier, Ms Bale told The Sun newspaper that she could not understand "what the fuss is about", saying her action was "a joke" and adding: "It's just a cat".

But she later issued a statement saying: "I want to take this opportunity to apologise profusely for the upset and distress that my actions have caused.

"I cannot explain why I did this, it is completely out of character and I certainly did not intend to cause any distress to Lola or her owners."

Ms Bale, who is now under investigation by the RSPCA, added: "It was a split second of misjudgment that has got completely out of control".

She promised to cooperate with the RSPCA and said: "I wish to reiterate that I am profoundly sorry for my actions and wish to resolve this matter to everyone's satisfaction as soon as possible."

Police have said Ms Bale has not committed a criminal offence.

- AFP