http://news360.com/article/239475774

The Huffington Post

Are People In Hawaii Killing Cats For Sport? 

 05/16/2014

While one Hawaiian island is being overrun by thousands of mice, another is seeing a disturbing trend of cat disappearances and murders.

In the past two months, according to Basil Scott, president of the Kauai Community Cat Project, more than 50 cats on Kauai have either been killed or have disappeared.

“We’ve had some shootings, poisonings, (and) one intentional running over,” Scott told The Garden Island. “There’s five places where we are very certain, or fairly certain, that people are killing cats. And some of it is crazy.”

The organization has received several reports of “sport type” cat shootings late at night and in public areas. People “have seen dead and dying cats,” according to a statement. “This is not only a violation of animal cruelty laws but is also prosecutable under firearms and public safety laws.”

According to Scott, a security guard witnessed one of the shootings, which involved several men shining a spotlight on a cat from a car before firing at it.

“We’re talking about guys who have been drinking, who have loaded firearms in the car, which is illegal,” Scott said.

The Kauai Police Department told The Garden Island paper that it had no knowledge of the alleged crimes, but the Humane Society is offering up to $5,000 for information leading to an arrest.