WEST JORDAN, Utah — A West Jordan man faces one charge of animal torture after he allegedly punched a kitten numerous times, forcing it to later be euthanized.
The female owner of the long-haired kitten named Marge told police that Edgar Eduardo Soto, 25, had been alone with the cat on Oct. 7 and told her that "something had happened," according to the arrest report.
Soto claimed he was giving Marge a bath when he slipped and fell, injuring the kitten. He took the cat to the veterinarian but did not have the funds to afford extended treatment.
Marge was taken to animal control the same day and was examined. The cat was found "to be in extreme pain and was suffering," police wrote, and was
humanely euthanized.
After a necropsy found several hemorrhages on the cat's brain, Soto admitted to putting a blanket over Marge's head "and striking her three to four times with his fist."
Soto was arrested and booked into the Salt Lake County Jail.
