18-year-old accused of animal cruelty after cat found dead in neighborhood

By KOVR Staff

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    ORANGEVALE, California (KOVR) — An 18-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of cruelty to animals after a cat was found dead in an Orangevale neighborhood.

The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office says, back on Sept. 7, deputies started investigating a report of two cats being stolen along the 9400 block of Deanna Avenue.

Investigators said the resident had surveillance video of someone walking onto her property at least twice. In one of the videos, the suspect was seen harming the cat; in the other video, the suspect appears to steal another cat.

One of the cats was later found dead in a nearby yard, the sheriff’s office said. The other cat has not been found.

Neighbors said they reported more than a dozen brutal cat killings and disappearances across Orangevale in recent months. Some neighbors even put out flyers and took to social media to warn others about the apparent crime spree.

Detectives have since identified the suspect as 18-year-old Sacramento County resident Colin Lendewig. He was arrested on Tuesday and is facing charges of cruelty to animals and petty theft.

There are no other outstanding suspects in the case, detectives said.

Lendewig is set to be arraigned in court on Thursday afternoon.

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