West Ham defender Kurt Zouma to be given animal cruelty ‘lessons’ by RSPCA as he hopes to dodge charges over cat attack
CAT-kicking Kurt Zouma will be given animal care “lessons” as he hopes to avoid prosecution.
The West Ham defender, 27, is facing charges within days as RSPCA inspectors handle their probe “at an incredible pace”.
But, West Ham manager David Moyes says Zouma is “hoping he’s forgiven for a bad action”.
Moyes told a press conference that Zouma will be handed courses on animal care by the RSPCA.
The player has already been questioned by the charity’s officers, sources say.
Other witnesses have also been spoken to about footage of the footballer booting and slapping his pet.
He handed his two Bengal cats to RSPCA care for health checks and assessment. It is unlikely he will get the prized animals back.
Zouma — who played for West Ham against Watford on Tuesday night despite a fan backlash — has been fined the maximum two weeks’ wages by his club.
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Meanwhile, Zouma’s brother Yoan, who plays for Dagenham and Redbridge, has been suspended by the National League club.
Defender Yoan, 23, filmed the abuse on his phone before uploading it to Snapchat.
If prosecuted and convicted, £30million centre back Zouma faces punishments ranging from a ban on owning animals to a jail sentence, although that is unlikely.
A source said: “The RSPCA has been working at an incredible pace — even before video of Zouma’s cat abuse went viral. There is big pressure for them to be taking decisive action after police handed them the lead on the investigation.
‘AVALANCHE OF COMPLAINTS’
“If they deem it severe enough, Zouma could be charged as quickly as next week. There’s a lot of public anger over what happened, and quite rightly, but the investigation needs to be done to the book.”
The RSPCA has been “combing through an avalanche of complaints” from animal-lovers after we broke the story on Tuesday.
It said last night: “Two cats are in our care and have been seen by a vet and are being well looked after. They will remain in our care while the investigation continues.”
French international Zouma also faces potential legal action in France after an animal rights group lodged a complaint in Paris.
French citizens can be prosecuted at home for crimes committed abroad.
Five years in jail under tough new laws
ANIMAL abusers now face tougher prison sentences under a new bill passed in Parliament last year.
The worst offenders can be caged for five years instead of just six months under the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Bill.
Dog fight organisers, farmers who neglect horses and thugs who abuse puppies or kittens can all be hit by the long jail term.
The new legislation — championed by PM Boris Johnson and his animal-loving wife Carrie — came after a four-year campaign by Battersea Cats & Dogs Home in London.
It makes CCTV mandatory in every slaughterhouse in England and bans the export of live animals for fattening and slaughter.
Standards in zoos must be improved and household pets even have their feelings protected.
The law says animals with a backbone have a right to happiness as well as avoiding suffering.
The Battersea home launched the crusade after discovering fly-tippers were given harsher sentences than animal abusers.
When the bill came into effect last June, comedian Ricky Gervais, 60 — a dedicated animal rights campaigner — said: “Justice will finally be served to anyone who perpetuates animal cruelty and a proper punishment brought in.
“It’s one I hope will serve as a deterrent to anyone who’d contemplate harming an innocent creature.”