A man who abused two cats so badly they died after suffering multiple fractures – one after apparently falling from the top-floor window of his flat – faces an eight-month jail term and has been banned from keeping animals for seven years after a prosecution by the RSPCA.
Charlie Damian Brown (D.o.B 12/4/2002), of Wellington Buildings, Ebury Bridge Road, Chelsea, pleaded not guilty to four offences under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, including two of inflicting blunt force trauma on the two cats called Lelu and Billy. He was convicted after a trial and was sentenced at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on February 6.
His partner, Soumeya Nait-Yahia (3/4/2002), also of Wellington Buildings, Ebury Bridge Road, Chelsea, pleaded not guilty to two offences under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 and was convicted after a trial at the same court.
The court heard how Lelu and Billy suffered numerous fractured bones, including broken ribs, while they were living at Brown’s flat.
Lelu, who was owned by Nait-Yahia, was reported to have fallen from the fifth-floor window of the block of flats on June 17, 2023. A neighbour took the cat to a vets and x-rays taken later at Blue Cross Victoria Animal Hospital showed she had suffered a broken right elbow. Her prognosis was poor as she had suffered head trauma and the vet decided the kindest course of action was to put the cat to sleep.
A post-mortem revealed Lelu, who was aged two, had other substantial injuries, including multiple broken ribs and a broken toe, which were healing. These suggested the animal was the subject of physical abuse before the fall. The cat also had more recent rib and jaw fractures as well as broken vertebrae.
RSPCA Inspector Miranda Albison went to Brown’s flat on July 7, 2023 to investigate Lelu’s death and that of her offspring, a female kitten called Billy, who the defendants claimed fell from a different window of the flat in September 2022.
The cat was found with multiple injuries, including a ruptured bladder, and broken ribs. She did not recover and a vet decided that the kindest course of action was to put her to sleep when she was eight months old.
The vet said in an expert report that the cat’s injuries were not caused by a fall from a window and said that three broken ribs were consistent with a blunt force being applied to her chest.
The court was told the defendants claimed they were asleep when Lelu fell out of a small gap in a sash window. When she was found on the ground, Brown said that the cat was unable to walk and appeared to have broken her leg.
The vet said: “About six weeks before Lelu’s death the cat had a dramatic change in her behaviour and was showing signs of aggression when approached and appeared to be wobbly when walking.
“This lasted for approximately three to four weeks which would be expected if these clinical signs were due to a number of rib and lower limb fractures that gradually healed over this period of time. At the time Lelu was weak, wobbly and unable to jump, neither defendant sought veterinary advice or treatment.”
The vet concluded Lelu and Billy were caused to suffer as a consequence of physical abuse.
“The suffering experienced by these animals via mechanisms of pain, fear and distress will have lasted for a period of at least two weeks, possibly longer,” he said.
At the sentencing hearing Brown was sentenced to four months in prison on each of the two counts of causing unnecessary suffering to the two cats by inflicting blunt force trauma, which made up an eight-month prison sentence. As well as the seven-year ban from keeping animals he was ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £187.
Brown has appealed his jail sentence and he was bailed with a curfew condition at a hearing at Southwark Crown Court on February 24 until his appeal hearing on May 23.
Nait-Yahai was sentenced to a 12-month community order at the initial sentencing hearing and she will have to complete 180 hours of unpaid work as part of her sentence. She was also banned from keeping animals for seven years and told to pay court costs of £900 and a victim surcharge of £114.
Speaking after the hearing RSPCA Inspector Albison said: “Brown deliberately abused these two cats on multiple occasions and he and his partner failed to seek vet treatment for them. This appalling behaviour ended in the sad deaths of both felines who had suffered multiple injuries.”
Ends
Notes to editors
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The offences Brown was convicted of:
That between the 11 August 2022 and 10 September 2022 at Wellington buildings, Ebury Bridge Road, you did cause unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, namely a female cat called Billy by doing an act namely the infliction of blunt force trauma, physical violence and non accidental injury and that you knew or ought reasonably to have known that that act would have the effect of causing unnecessary suffering or be likely to do so. Contrary to section 4 subsection 1 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
That between the 1 May 2023 and 17 June 2023 at Wellington buildings, Ebury Bridge Road, you did cause unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, namely a female black cat called Lelu by doing an act namely the infliction of blunt force trauma, physical violence and non accidental injury and that you knew or ought reasonably to have known that that act would have the effect of causing unnecessary suffering or be likely to do so. Contrary to section 4 subsection 1 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
That between the 1 May 2023 and 17 June 2023 at Wellington buildings, Ebury Bridge Road, being a person jointly concerned with Soumeya Nati-Yahia, you did cause unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, namely a female black cat called Lelu by failing to do an act, namely failing to provide the said animal with proper and necessary veterinary care and attention for her multiple injuries identified by her weakness, uncoordination and inability to jump and that you knew or ought reasonably to have known that that failure would have the effect of causing unnecessary suffering or be likely to do so. Contrary to section 4 subsection 1 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
That between the 1 May 2023 and 17 June 2023 at Wellington buildings, Ebury Bridge Road, being a person jointly concerned with Soumeya Nati-Yahia, you did cause unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, namely a female black cat called Lelu by failing to do an act, namely failing to provide the said animal with a safe environment in which to live and that you knew or ought reasonably to have known that that failure would have the effect of causing unnecessary suffering or be likely to do so. Contrary to section 4 subsection 1 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
The offences Nait-Yahai was convicted of:
That between the 1 May 2023 and 17 June 2023 at Wellington buildings, Ebury Bridge Road, being a person jointly concerned with Charlie Brown, you did cause unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, namely a female black cat called Lelu by failing to do an act, namely failing to provide the said animal with proper and necessary veterinary care and attention for her multiple injuries identified by her weakness, uncoordination and inability to jump and that you knew or ought reasonably to have known that that failure would have the effect of causing unnecessary suffering or be likely to do so. Contrary to section 4 subsection 1 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
That between the 1 May 2023 and 17 June 2023 at Wellington buildings, Ebury Bridge Road, being a person jointly concerned with Charlie Brown, you did cause unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, namely a female black cat called Lelu by failing to do an act, namely failing to provide the said animal with a safe environment in which to live and that you knew or ought reasonably to have known that that failure would have the effect of causing unnecessary suffering or be likely to do so. Contrary to section 4 subsection 1 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
Gwyn Griffiths – Regional Press Officer
London, Surrey, Kent, East Sussex and West Sussex
Email: [email protected]
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Gwyn Griffiths
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www.rspca.org.uk
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals registered charity no: 219099 Registered office: RSPCA, Parkside, Chart Way, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 1GY
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