A Costa Rican court on Monday gave a two-year suspended prison sentence to a man responsible for murdering his pet, a cat named Ochi, whom he threw from the sixth floor of a building in 2019, an incident recorded on video. Judge Tatiana López sentenced Gabriel Saborío, 31, to two years in prison, the maximum sentence allowed by the animal welfare law, in force in the Central American country since 2017. He was also banned to live with animals.
The viral video on social networks
He was given a reprieve, however, so he will only go to jail if he commits a new crime within five years. In November 2019, Mr. Saborío threw his pet from the sixth floor of a building in the capital San José, a fall of almost 30 meters. It was not until August 2020 that a procedure was opened, when the video of the incident went viral on social networks.
According to the autopsy, the animal suffered from multiple fractures, a dislocation, pulmonary contusions and internal bleeding due to shock. After falling, the cat was able to reach a park where it was found and died despite the help that was brought to it.
The maximum sentence reached
The judge accused the defendant of being “heartless” and of having “betrayed” his pet. “From a sentencing perspective, we are satisfied because the maximum sentence allowed by law has been reached and this shows that animal abuse is not allowed in Costa Rica,” said Gustavo Corella, the lawyer for the prosecution in this case. This is the second criminal conviction for violence against animals in Costa Rica.
In Argentina, at least three people have received suspended prison sentences for killing dogs in recent years. In Brazil, on October 13, a criminal court sentenced a policeman to four years and eight months in prison and a fine for shooting down a dog on the public highway. In Peru, a man was also sentenced to two and a half years in prison in November 2017, for killing a cat named Machín, the first such sentence in the country.