'Pure evil' yob who attacked cat at Southsea Model Village is still evading police

As previously reported, a man dressed in a black hoodie and dark jogging bottoms broke into the Southsea Model Village site on Thursday.

CCTV footage showed the thug chasing after a feral cat, who lives at the attraction and is affectionately known as Rooney, and hurling stones at it.

No arrests have been made and police are urging people to call 101, quoting 44210033765.

A spokesperson for animal welfare charity the RSPCA has since condemned the attack and said: ‘It is very upsetting to think that anyone could cause distress and danger to a defenceless animal and we urge anyone who can help the police investigation to contact them.’

Footage of the attack, shared by the model village over Facebook, sparked outrage in the city.

One woman who commented on the video said: ‘This makes me so angry and upset that people like this not only try to harm a poor innocent cat but to also ruin a beautiful place I grew up with.’

Mark Wilson, boss of the Southsea attraction – off Eastney Esplande – said he was ‘sick to the stomach’ when he watched the recording.

Speaking to The News, Mark said: ‘This is just evil. It’s pure evil. If someone can do this to an innocent animal imagine what they could do to a human.

‘It’s unbelievable and totally mindless. I can’t understand the attraction of attacking a defenceless cat. It makes me sick to the teeth.’

It was the second time black cat Rooney was attacked, having previously been kicked in the face by a 16-year-old boy in 2019.

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