Florida father accused of killing kittens in front of teen daughter as punishment

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- A Florida man has been charged with animal cruelty after he allegedly killed two kittens and injured another, WINK News reported.

Warning: The details of the story may be disturbing to some viewers.

Police say he allegedly committed the crimes in front of his teenage daughter as a form of punishment.

Body camera video shows deputies detaining 48-year-old David Charette Jr. outside of his Pine Manor home.

Before he was placed in handcuffs, he told deputies he had done nothing wrong.

"The cat's in perfectly healthy condition. I have to give the cat a bath because it soils itself in the cage," Charette said.

Detectives say what they learned from a 14-year-old girl inside the home told a very different story.

"A daughter says that when she acts up or when she's in trouble, her father kills her kittens. This is sickening to me," said Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno.

The girl called 911 on Wednesday after allegedly watching her father hold a 2-month-old kitten, named Luna, under running water.

She told deputies that Charette also hit the kitten with a nail polish bottle and put her into a clothes dryer on Saturday.

Luna survived and is recovering.

"It's ridiculous. It's horrible. It's sad," said Brandon, a neighbor.

Marceno says this was not the first time.

"Two of the kittens that he killed were buried in the back," Marceno said.

Marceno said one cat died in June after being hit repeatedly and left on a bleach-soaked rag while another kitten was found dead in November after suffering burns from a blow dryer.

Detectives say family members never reported the abuse because they feared retaliation.

Three adult cats were taken from the home for evaluation.

Charette is now in jail charged with aggravated animal cruelty.

"Killed in front of the child. It's horrible. It's sad. It's heartbreaking and, it just, it's It makes me very upset," Brandon said.

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