OAK HILL, Fla. — A Florida woman threw a pet crate containing her ex-boyfriend’s cat into the Intracoastal Waterway on Thursday night after the two got into an argument over him moving out of the recreational vehicle they shared, according to WFTV and the Volusia Sheriff’s Office.
The cat, named Stanley, was rescued, deputies said. Officials with Volusia County Animal Services have since taken custody of the cat to perform a follow-up evaluation.
Deputies said they were called just before 7 p.m. to the Riverwood Park Campground on H H Burch Road after Christa Anne Thistle, 53, and her former long-term boyfriend began to argue. Authorities said the couple had recently broken up, and they got into an argument Thursday over the ex-boyfriend “not moving out fast enough.”
“She began moving his belongings out of the RV, knocked over some food that was being cooked, then picked up Stanley’s cat crate and threw him into the river,” deputies said in a news release.
The ex-boyfriend jumped into the water to rescue Stanley, who was estimated to be submerged for about 20 seconds, authorities said. When deputies arrived, they found the cat “still wet and shivering” while Thistle’s ex-boyfriend was “wet from the waist down, consistent with jumping in the river to save (the cat).”
In body cam footage shared by police, Thistle denied having thrown the cat into the river.
“Who would want to throw a cat in the river?” she asked as a deputy handcuffed her.
WOMAN CHARGED WITH ANIMAL CRUELTY AFTER THROWING CAT IN CRATE INTO RIVER (DON'T WORRY, HE WAS RESCUED) An Oak Hill...
Posted by Volusia Sheriff's Office on Friday, August 20, 2021
Thistle was arrested on a felony charge of cruelty to animals, according to jail records. Deputies also charged her with simple assault “after she demanded to be taken to jail so she could make a phone call, bond out and kill her ex-boyfriend.”
She remained jailed without bond on Friday afternoon, jail records showed.
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