California man arrested for allegedly luring pet cats in order to violently beat them to death

A man was arrested after a string of violent cat deaths were reported by pet owners in Orange County, California.

46-year-old Alejandro Oliveros Acosta was accused of killing or injuring numerous cats since November in the Santa Ana area, according to police.

He was found to be in possession of methamphetamine at the time of his arrest, according to police.

The Santa Ana Police Department first acknowledged the reports in a social media post in April, which referred to residents being “deeply concerned” about “multiple incidents of cats being killed” in the community.

KTLA-TV compiled several reports from viewers about the incidents.

“We saw our cameras, and this guy just grabbed a neighborhood cat, seemed like he tied his legs up and took him around 5pm. He went walking on Shelton street towards McFadden. The cat is Black with light brown spots,” read a post on the Nextdoor app.

“Hello! I’m near El Savador park and my neighbor’s cat was killed by a man that injected it with some sort of substance,” read another post.

A suspect was captured on surveillance video luring a Bengal Lynx cat with cat food, but the pet was returned to its family after the video was released publicly.

Weeks later, a man called Santa Ana Animal Control to report that he had seen his neighbor pick up a cat over his head and slam it to the ground.

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Image source: Santa Ana Police Facebook reel screenshot

Another report described a man driving a truck similar to that in the Bengal cat incident but stomping on a cat with his foot.

Police identified a suspect as Oliveros Acosta, and he was arrested in April. He was found to be in possession of methamphetamine at the time of his arrest, according to police.

Community outrage over the case led to a vigil outside the suspect’s home, where people were reportedly injured after some started throwing objects and vandalizing property.

Oliveros Acosta was charged with two felonies, animal cruelty and theft of a companion animal, as well as misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance.

Prosecutors asked for bail to be increased to $100,000 from the statutory $20,000 for Acosta based on their opinion that he posed a danger to the community.