Police warn Croydon Cat Killer is ‘likely to kill humans’ as horrifying attacks on moggies rise
HORRIFYING details have emerged of how a serial cat killer slaughters his victims before carefully dissecting them – and he could strike again today.
He has butchered more than 400 pets, selecting his targets then using raw meat to lure them into a trap.
Once clear of houses and CCTV cameras, he bludgeons the cat to death with a blunt tool before “precisely and surgically” cutting off its head and removing its tail with a sharp knife.
If he has time, he removes its organs and pelvis.
The mutilated corpse is then left on display in a specific signature position for its owner to find.
Experts now warn it could be only a matter of time before he claims a human life.
He has even been likened to Jack the Ripper for the way the crimes are planned.
Det Sgt Andy Collin, who is leading the Metropolitan Police’s response to the spate of killings, said: “There is a known link between serial killers and harming animals.
“If you look at offending patterns, the assumption is this killer is getting some form of gratification.
“The concern is they will cease getting that gratification and escalate the attacks to humans, specifically vulnerable women and girls.”
Killings have been almost daily over the past month, with foxes targeted along with pet rabbits that are snatched from back gardens.
The serial slayer has been variously nicknamed the Croydon Cat Killer, where his first known mutilations occurred in late 2015, and latterly the M25 Cat Killer.
His original South London hunting ground has since extended to all over the country.
The same unique mutilations have featured in cat killings as far away as Manchester, Birmingham, the Isle of Wight, Sheffield and Sussex.
Remains have been left under owners’ bedroom windows, on cars and in areas used by children.
The killer has sometimes taken carcasses of animals away with him, returning days later to crime scenes to place them in easy view.
Mick Neville, a retired Met detective chief inspector, added: “The psychological impact is massive.
"People will be mentally scarred for ever by the experience.
“Anyone who deliberately harms an animal without reason is likely to be a psychopath or suffering a severe personality disorder.
“Serial killers like Ian Brady, Ted Bundy and the Boston Strangler all started off on their path to murder by gratuitously killing animals.
“An American study showed animal abusers are five times more likely to commit violent crimes against people.
“It is imperative this serial animal killer is caught as soon as possible.”
The sharp escalation in the number of slayings over the past month has alarmed animal campaigners and police, who issued a warning at the weekend urging all cat owners to keep their pets inside at night.
Even if caught, the RSPCA cannot take direct action against the twisted killer because it can only prosecute for cruelty to animals.
The killings do not qualify because they are carried out quickly.
Dressed in dark clothing and carrying a rucksack containing a torch, knives and trapping equipment, the killer has regularly struck twice in one night and in September killed three times in a day, in North West London, Milton Keynes and Northampton.
He struck five times in Northampton between the end of August and November 18.
The first victim was left in a plastic bag on its owner’s doorstep, the last on a car roof.
The butcher usually leaves his home by car or van to strike in the early hours.
Ex-cop Mick is convinced the killer comes from the Addiscombe area of Croydon, where the killings began.
Last week he visited the scene of several killings around the area with The Sun.
These included Dalmally Road, where four-year-old ragdoll cat Ukiyo was found cut into pieces two years ago.
Mr Neville said: “There is someone behind one of the doors of these suburban terraced streets hiding a wicked secret.
“This area seems to be the epicentre of his killing operations. It is where he began and where he still feels at home.
“The fact he has struck on a Sunday night in the Croydon area also indicates he is local and probably on a day off from work.
“Jack the Ripper struck at weekends and bank holidays.
“These roads are quiet, there is very little traffic and no CCTV. It is perfect for him.
“I believe he has been observing and carefully planning his killings from one of the houses in this area.”
The Met is leading a joint investigation, codenamed Operation Takahe, to find the killer, with the help of the RSPCA and a local animal rescue group. SNARL — South Norwood Animal Rescue and Liberty — was the first to investigate the wave of killings after seeing a Facebook post from a vet about cat mutilations.
They have also raised funds for veterinary post-mortem examinations to be carried out on the animals.
Their Facebook page provides an almost daily update on the killings, offers advice to distressed cat owners and is filled with memorial postings for pets that have been slaughtered.
The first known victim was a tortoiseshell tabby named Amber, found cut up in woodland in Shirley, near Croydon.
Boudica recalled: “Her head and tail were missing. We agreed an animal could not have been responsible.
"A vet concluded she was killed by a blunt instrument then cut up by a human. It was surgical and precise and done with a knife.”
The couple are consulted by police forces around the country when the bodies of animals are found.
Tony then accompanies officers to the crime scenes.
'Taking his revenge for abuse'
THE cat killer was likely to have been violently or sexually abused as a child, and is probably known to authorities, writes MIKE SULLIVAN.
That is according to former Scotland Yard detective Mick Neville, who said: “A US study found that children exposed to domestic violence were three times more likely to be cruel to animals.
"Sexually abused children are five times more likely to hurt animals.
“He may be taking out his ‘revenge’ on cats and other animals to make up for the abuse he suffered.
“It is quite possible that the suspect began abusing animals in his childhood or youth.
“Teachers and youth workers in the Croydon area should be consulted.”
Experts have pointed to a terrifying trait of serial killers starting out by abusing animals before going on to take human lives.
Moors murderer Ian Brady, whose five victims in the Sixties were children, abused dogs, cats and rabbits as a kid.
American killer Ted Bundy confessed to the murders of 36 girls and young women in the Seventies, and is also believed to have tortured animals as a child.
Mick added that if the cat killer was in a relationship, he was likely to be violent towards his partner, and that police would probably be considering known domestic abusers around Croydon as suspects.
He said: “Research shows that 75 per cent of battered women have seen pets deliberately hurt by partners in front of their children.
“In the home, he may abuse his own family’s pet to control his partner and any children.”
The RSPCA has been analysing historical crime files on animal attackers.
Mike added: “Someone must have a suspicion about who it is. If it is a battered partner they will probably be too scared to come forward.
“However, this has been going on for a long time. Something in the first place triggered him off.
"He will be hiding in plain sight and it is just a matter of time before someone realises.
“It is a perfectly solvable case.”
The cat killer has been seen from a distance during sprees in Orpington, Kent, and Caterham, Surrey.
He is described as a white male, in his forties, with short brown hair and a pock-marked face who was dressed in dark clothing and carrying a rucksack, torch or headlamp.
A £10,000 reward for his capture has been offered by the animal charities Peta UK and Outpaced.
Mike Butcher, chief inspector of the RSPCA’s special operations unit, said: “The hard fact is there is someone cutting animals up with a sharp knife and they need catching.’’
Police are believed to have a list of potential suspects and, with the RSPCA unable to prosecute for cruelty, are hoping to bring a charge of aggravated criminal damage, which is punishable by up to 14 years’ jail.
Tony said: “People need to understand the horror of someone who has opened their bedroom curtains in the morning, looked down and seen their beautiful cat without its head or tail.
"Whoever is responsible is a psychopath.
"His purpose for doing this is to shock and horrify humans by displaying the bodies for people to find.
“Some of the bodies have been left in parks near playgrounds. It’s sick.
“He has now killed more than 400 times since October 2015 and we are starting to get reports of more mutilations going back to 2013. I suspect he has been doing this for years.
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“We are only including cases in our tally where we see the actual bodies or get reports of forensic details which clearly match.
“He needs to be stopped as soon as possible but it is almost impossible to predict where he will strike next.”
- Anyone with information about the killer should call police on 0208 649 0216, the RSPCA on 0300 123 4999 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.