The ASPCA is offering a $2,500 reward for information leading to an arrest in the case of a malnourished cat left in a sealed bucket in lower Manhattan.
A man, who was caught on surveillance video, left the bucket across from an animal shelter on Centre Street, near Hester Street, in Little Italy at about 7:40 p.m. on Dec. 13, police said. The bucket was sealed, but the lid had a hole in it, cops said.
“This poor kitty is in bad shape and, needless to say, is terrified,” the shelter, Animal Haven, said on Instagram, posting pictures of the cat.
This is the second time someone has left a cat in a bucket near the shelter in recent months, according to Animal Haven.
Last month, the shelter posted photos of a bucket containing a cat that was left near the back door of their building.
“Luckily the sweet thing, who we have named Sage, is safe and sound now,” the shelter wrote in the post.
It was not immediately clear if the same man placed the first bucket.
“These cats were discarded on a city curb as if they were garbage,” said Howard Lawrence, vice president of the ASPCA’s humane law enforcement. “Such callous disregard for a living creature is unconscionable and should not be tolerated in New York City, or anywhere.”
Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS
