The cat escaped from his travel bag and got underneath a stationary train. People pleaded for the train to be delayed, but instead it set off as planned and Neko was sliced in half. The rail staff stated that 'it was just a cat' .
PETER ALLEN: Cat lovers have called for French railway staff to be sent to prison after a much-loved family pet was ”sliced in half” because they refused to delay a train when he ran on the track. The death of Neko, aged four, has caused widespread anger across the country, and a criminal prosecution that on Tuesday was being considered by judges in Paris. Animal rights activists have called for tough action against SNCF, France’s national rail operator, following the cat’s death in January.
He was with his owners – named by the Paris Police Tribunal as Georgia and her 15-year-old daughter Melaina – at Paris Montparnasse station when he escaped from his travel bag and got underneath a stationary train bound for Bordeaux. After a 20-minute search, they pleaded for the train to be delayed, but instead it set off as planned… “We saw him sliced in half,’”said Melaina, who is being supported by the animal rights group 30 Million Friends. “The rail staff told us it wasn’t their problem – that it was just a cat and that we should have had him on a leash”…
The case opened on Monday, with SNCF facing the charge of ‘inflicting involuntary harm on a domestic pet,’ but 30 Million Friends lawyers said the offence should be raised. Prosecutors have initially asked for the charges to be dropped, but judges were on Tuesday mulling over the case, and could still order a trial. “Neko has not said his last word,” said Georgia. “This must never happen again. A trial is important symbolically”… Demonstrators have gathered across the country, and a “Justice for Neko” petition is approaching 40,000 signatures. SOURCE…
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