POMPANO BEACH, Fla. – A South Florida woman has been arrested on some disturbing animal cruelty allegations.
It happened on Tuesday at approximately 12:30 p.m. in the backyard of a home along the 1600 block of Northeast 33rd Street in Pompano Beach.
Police have since arrested 79-year-old Elgathe Celestin.
Sky 10 flew over the home where police said they found a cat that had been set on fire.
A resident says he saw smoke coming from his neighbor’s backyard, and when he looked over the fence, he saw a cat being burned alive.
“I looked and I saw she was stoking the flames up and the cat was moving,” said the man, who asked not to be identified. “I was on the phone with 911 telling them the cat was still alive.”
The neighbor believes it was a trapped stray cat.
“(The police) kept asking her, ‘What are you doing? What are you doing?’” he said.
Investigators said the cat had to be euthanized.
Celestin is facing an animal cruelty charge.
Local 10 News’ Bridgette Matter briefly spoke to her son.
“I have no idea. I don’t know what happened,” he said.
Another neighbor told Local 10 News that she has smelled what she thought was dead animals for over a year, on and off, adding that Celestin was always kind and friendly.