PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — Authorities are searching for a man accused of shooting community cats in Palm Beach County, including one that survived but required an emergency amputation.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office is asking for the public’s help identifying the man, who was captured on surveillance video behind the Sunshine Flea Market on Aug. 25.
“Several months ago, we started hearing rumblings that there may be somebody out there killing community cats,” said Jan Steele with Palm Beach Animal Care & Control.
At first, animal control officials needed evidence.
That came last month when a cat was brought in dead from a gunshot wound, which was confirmed during a necropsy.
“Not long after that, we had another cat in the general vicinity that was shot and this time the cat was alive,” Steele said.
Surveillance video captures man near cat colony
Surveillance video from behind the Sunshine Flea Market shows a man wearing a blue shirt and jeans riding into the area on a bicycle.
The man appears to be wearing a spotlight on his head and holding what appears to be a gun.
“We see a cat run past, we know that there are cats in that green swale area and we know he was shooting in that area,” Steele said.
People who feed cats in the area said there is an established community cat colony behind the flea market.
Gabriella Gluck, with Furry Friends Humane, said the intentional nature of the attacks is particularly concerning.
“Someone who is intentionally going out and harming animals or having malice towards animals -- it’s very disturbing, it’s sad, we want to make sure it doesn’t happen to another animal,” Gluck said.
Cat undergoes emergency amputation
Furry Friends Humane took in the black cat that survived the shooting and named her Zoe.
The gunshot shattered her shoulder, requiring emergency surgery to amputate her front left limb.
Lacey Wiles, who is fostering Zoe, said the circumstances surrounding the shooting make the case especially shocking.
“This was not protecting your property, this wasn’t protecting another animal, a pet of your own. This was absolutely nothing of that nature. This was just seeking out an animal with intent to harm and that’s what I think makes this so shocking,” Wiles said.
Zoe, an outdoor community cat, must now adjust to living inside because of her amputation.
“Zoe obviously has come in to us injured and she is an outside community cat, so her entire world has just changed because now due to the amputation, she’s no longer an animal we would consider able to thrive and live her life outside,” Wiles said.
Wiles is now working to socialize Zoe, who is unfamiliar with humans and living within four walls.
Reward increases to $10,000
Authorities and animal advocates hope someone will recognize the man seen in the surveillance video.
Furry Friends Humane said an outpouring of support from the community helped increase the reward for information to $10,000.
“After we posted that video, we got so much community support that some of our longtime donors reached out and said, ‘Hey, we want to help,’ and we were actually able to double the reward to $10,000,” Gluck said.
Officials are also urging people not to use artificial intelligence filters to alter the surveillance images. According to authorities, online efforts using AI filters have impeded the investigation and wasted time and resources.
Investigators believe there may be more victims.
“We know that there were more, we just don’t have the proof of how many more,” Steele said.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone who recognizes the man captured on surveillance video to come forward.
“Because we want every animal in Palm Beach County to live a humane and loving life, it’s really important for us to catch whoever is doing this,” Steele said.
Anyone who recognizes the man in the surveillance video is asked to contact PBSO’s Animal Crimes Unit at animalcruelty@pbso.org or the PBCACC at https://secure.co.palm-beach.fl.us/PSD.ACC.AnimalCruelty/.
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