A Florida woman has been charged with animal cruelty after allegedly throwing her ex-boyfriend’s cat into a river while it was still locked inside a crate, according to reports.
Christina Thistle, 53, was taken into custody last Thursday night at a mobile home park in Oak Hill, north of Titusville, and remains in the Volusia County Jail without bond, News 6 Orlando reported.
Thistle was also charged with simple assault after threatening to kill her ex-boyfriend following her arrest, police said.
The cat, whose name is Stanley, survived the incident and is expected to be OK.
Volusia County Sheriff’s Office investigators said Thistle and her ex got into an argument because the man did not immediately move out after the couple broke up.
As the quarrel escalated, Thistle picked up the crate containing the cat and tossed it into the Intracoastal Waterway, the man told police, according to News 6.
The ex-boyfriend, who was not identified in reports, told authorities he immediately jumped in the water to save the animal, which was trapped under water for at least 20 seconds, WESH 2 News said.
Police were called to the Riverwood Park Campground and arrived shortly before 7 p.m. to find the man drenched from the waist down and holding the cat wrapped in a towel, News 6 reports.
“Stanley was still wet and shivering when deputies arrived, and the boyfriend was wet from the waist down, consistent with jumping in the river to save him,” an arrest report said, according to WESH.
Thistle denied throwing the cat into the waterway, but deputies at the scene didn’t buy her story and placed her under arrest. While in custody, Thistle demanded she be allowed to “make a phone call” so she could “bond out and murder” her ex-boyfriend.
As a result, the judge in the case ordered her to remain behind bars, WESH reported.
The woman has been arrested several times before on domestic violence charges, News 6 reports.
The cat was taken to Volusia County Animal Services for a follow-up evaluation, reports said.
About the Author
