DOVER, Del. – A $500 reward has been offered for information leading to the arrest of an unknown suspect who beat a cat to death with a broken shovel handle in Dover. The cat’s owner is now speaking out, pleading with the public to help bring the murderer to justice.
John Forbes, of Dover, is beside himself after learning that his seven-year-old pet cat Willa was killed last week, having been beat to death with the broken handle of a shovel near his property off West Denneys Road.
“She did not deserve a violent death like this from a deranged individual,” Forbes said somberly. “It’s just devastating. She was such a loving pet, we had her since she was a kitten, she was born here.”
Willa was killed sometime between the nighttime hours on Monday, August 8 and the early morning hours on Tuesday, August 9. Her body was found Tuesday evening by a woman who cares for the local feral cat population near Forbes’ home where Willa was known to frequent as she was an indoor-outdoor cat.
The broken handle of a shovel that was used to murder Willa, which was found on top of her lifeless body. (Photo provided by John Forbes)
“The property adjoining mine has a feral cat population that was being cared for by quite a few different people, and since my property was adjoining, my cat would go back there to visit,” Forbes said. “Apparently, this person (referencing the suspect who killed his cat) decided they were going to go back there and injure or kill a cat.”
Forbes believes it was Willa’s kind nature that ultimately did her in, as the feral cats she hung with likely ran when the suspect approached, but Willa was domesticated and had no fear of humans.
“She was so friendly, she probably ran right to him,” Forbes said. “And then he beat her to death with a broken shovel handle, it was still laying on top of her body. She walked to her death, thinking she was probably going to get pet or fed.”
Forbes says he and others have no idea who could have done this, but that a $500 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest of the individual responsible.
“I hope justice is served,” Forbes said. “There’s currently a $500 reward, that’s a nice piece of change, it could pay for a lot of things, if someone has heard something. People like this that do this type of despicable killing, they like to brag, somebody will end up hearing something.”
People who kill animals indiscriminately are often times viewed as pre-psychopaths, according to Forbes who said this makes what happened to Willa all the more concerning and that it’s important this person is found and brought to justice.
“As they say, most serial killers start out abusing animals,” Forbes said. “It’s just terrible. She was such a sweetheart, everybody loved her.”
As mentioned, a $500 reward has been offered for information leading to an arrest of the suspect responsible. Those who can provide further information on Willa’s murder are urged to call (302) 943-9171 as it pertains to the reward.
47 ABC News reached out to Delaware Office of Animal Welfare who is aware of the incident and is investigating. They urge anyone with any information pertinent to the investigation to call Delaware Animal Services at 302-255-4646.