RSS
Home
Woman charged with stealing neighbor's cat
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
A Batavia woman has been charged with misdemeanor theft after she allegedly lured a neighbor's cat with food, caught it, drove miles away, and released the cat in a rural area.
The cat's owner allege that 55 year old Brenda Scharlu, of the 100 block of North Harrison Street in Batavia stole their cat after becoming upset over the cat's alleged killing of wild chipmunks in the neighborhood. Police reports allege that Scharlu bragged to neighbors about stealing the cat using a $0.39 can of tuna from Aldi's. The owners have been looking for their 9 year old American shorthair named Linus, which is gray with black stripes, since he went missing on May 28th of this year, despite active searches. Scharlau is is due in court on August 11th to face the misdemeanor theft charge.
These allegations, if true, are quite sickening. As someone who has owned cats, dogs, and other pets for most of his life, I find it repugnant to think that a person would steal a beloved pet and release it where it could suffer and die. Our laws really should treat pet theft more along the lines of kidnapping, instead of mere property theft, given the place that pets have in their owner's heart. I sincerely hope that Linis is returned safely to his home.
This situation is also the exact reason that I keep my cat indoors. Cats that are let outside can be stolen, hit by cars, injured by other animal, or exposed to transmittable feline diseases, such as feline AIDS and leukemia. I would urge my fellow cat owners to keep their domesticated cats indoors where, in my humble opinion, they belong.
