Missouri man allegedly purchased cats on Craigslist then strangled them

ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. - Prosecutors have charged a 20-year-old man with animal abuse after the suspect admitted to police that he was buying cats on Craigslist and then torturing and killing them.

The St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney's Office charged Kaine Louzader with two counts of animal abuse.

According to a probable cause statement, multiple dead cats and kittens were found in the area of Wild Deer Lane between January 1 and May 9.

According to the prosecutor's office, more than a dozen cats may have been killed. They said some kittens were found mutilated.

Court documents said Louzader told police that he would strangle or stomp on the heads of the cats in the bathtub or backyard patio. The suspect said, after killing the cats, he dismembered them by removing the heads or cutting off the limbs.

Police said, when speaking with Louzader and asked about cuts and scratches on his body, he originally said an elderly female patient at the hospital he works at did it. Police said he later changed his story and said the scratches were from cats trying to flee while he was strangling them.