Teenage cat abuser sentenced to drug rehab
Woman, 18, escapes a jail term as the magistrate takes into account her young age
PUBLISHED : Thursday, 16 January, 2014, 1:06pm
UPDATED : Thursday, 16 January, 2014, 3:08pm
Sijia Jiang [email protected]
The case of cat abuse saw two men, Yeung Kiu-yue (left) and So Pak-lam, jailed this month. Photo: Felix Wong
A young woman who took part in torturing a stray cat to the brink of death in Kwun Tong has been sent for rehabilitation after two of her friends were jailed for 16 months each earlier this month.
The two men were earlier handed the longest jail term Hong Kong courts had imposed to date for animal cruelty, a ruling applauded by animal rights advocates.
On Thursday, co-defendant Kong Ka-man, 18, was sentenced to a drug addiction treatment centre for an unspecified period, after the case exposed her abuse of drugs.
“The seriousness of the case need not be repeated,” Deputy Magistrate Kennis Tai Chiu-ki said in Kwun Tong Court.
“But your record is clear and your age is young. I find it more important to help you rehabilitate yourself.”
Kong was part of a group of people who pounced on the cat in the November 2012 incident, leading to injuries so severe that the animal was euthanised the next day.
Two men kicked and passed the cat like a soccer ball, a witness had testified during the trial. One man laughed while others stood and watched, the witness said.
A photo circulated online showing blood oozing from the cat’s mouth sparked outrage.
So Pak-lam, 23, and Yeung Kiu-yue, 26, were jailed on January 2. Tai said at the time that the pain inflicted on the animal was beyond description and chastised the pair for being “cruel and lacking a heart of compassion”.
At Thursday’s sentencing, defence counsel Luk King-wang said in mitigation that Kong had quit school after Form Two and was led astray by “bad friends”.
It was only after the case of cat abuse that her parents learned she had been on drug since 2009, Luk said. “She has stopped doing drugs since November last year and … has promised to reflect on her mistakes,” he said.
Prosecutor Danny Ng Pak-kin said the teen had played a smaller role in the offence and that no direct evidence showed her kicking the cat. He had no comment on Kong’s sentence.
A fourth defendant, Yip Wai-kit, 23, was acquitted as closed-circuit television footage did not capture his face.
