Singapore jails man for leaving 43 cats without food, water at faeces-strewn flat
- Muhammad Danial Sukirman was sentenced to 20 days’ jail for causing ‘unnecessary pain and suffering’ to the felines by failing to provide adequate food and water
- Two dead cats and skeletal remains were also found in the vacant flat, where he fed the animals once a week from a big bag of dry kibble
Muhammad Danial Sukirman pleaded guilty on Wednesday to 10 charges of causing unnecessary pain and suffering to an animal as a pet owner.
Taken into consideration for sentencing were another 34 charges under the Animal and Birds Act relating to 33 other cats and one charge of failing to comply with a written notice requiring his attendance before an officer from the Animal and Veterinary Service (AVS).
Danial had caused “unnecessary pain and suffering” to the 43 cats by failing to provide adequate food and water and leaving them unattended between August and November 2021 in a flat in Ang Mo Kio, court documents stated.
NParks’ prosecutors Ron Goh and Farisha Asharaff informed the court that the case involved the largest number of abandoned pets so far in a prosecution under the section of the Animal and Birds Act pertaining to animal cruelty.
TODAY understands that it is the first jail sentence imposed for a conviction under Section 42(1)(d) of the Act, pertaining to neglect by pet owners.
Farisha, who noted that the 43 cats were kept in a small, confined space without adequate food and water, said: “It is a case that has set its own precedent.”