The cat Neko, who was hit by a train in Paris, causes quite a stir. Now, even the Minister of the Interior of France, Gerald Darmanin, has spoken out. He was shocked by the way the French railway company SNCF handled the horrific case.
Investigations will show who is criminally responsible for this, the minister told French television station BFMTV. Now he wants to better combat animal cruelty with training courses for police officers across the country, he said on Twitter.
Les animaux sont des êtres vulnerables, doués de sensibilité, qui méritent notre protection. Les acts of violence qu’ils subissent parfois are unsupportable. C’est pourquoi j’ai décidé de renforcer les moyens de lutte contre ces violences que les Français n’acceptent plus ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/akULEODfre
— Gerald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) January 27, 2023
The cat escaped from the bag of its owners, Georgia and their 15-year-old daughter Melaina, on Jan. 2 at Montparnasse train station and disappeared under a train. Despite twenty minutes of negotiations with the crew, they were unable to stop the train from leaving, Melaina told animal rights group 30 Million Friends. They were told it wasn’t their problem it was just a cat and they should have kept her on a leash.
Lawsuit alleging “serious abuse and cruelty”
The organization sued the SNCF for “severe mistreatment and cruelty that led to the death of an animal”. If it goes to trial, a fine of up to €75,000 and a five-year prison sentence could be imposed.
As the daily newspaper “Le Parisien” wrote, the SNCF regrets the tragic incident and stated that it was unable to save the cat because access to the tracks is strictly prohibited due to the risk of electrocution.