Prosecutor demands nine months for crossbow attacks on Eindhoven cats

The Public Prosecution Service demanded an unconditional nine-month prison sentence against a 26-year-old man from Eindhoven. It says he shot five cats with a crossbow in the Woensel district. One cat, shot in the eye, died. The other four were injured.

The shootings caused much unrest in the neighbourhood. Police checked doorbell camera footage, but local residents caught the man one evening, locked him in and called the police. He has been in custody since. He has said he will return to China after his detention, and the prosecution said that is why it demanded no suspended part.

The man first denied it, then confessed. In court he said a cat had scratched him and that he had bought the crossbow online. He said he wanted to scare the cats away and went out in the dark so nobody would see him. He apologised and said he had paid the owners' costs.

The prosecutor said it was worrying that such a minor trigger led him to shoot at cats: "And it's worrying that the defendant then decides, over something so trivial, to shoot at cats with a crossbow." The prosecutor added that he deliberately hunted cats and ignored the impact on owners and neighbours.

His defence lawyer argued that a sentence no longer than the time he has already spent in pre-trial detention is enough.