MORRISTOWN (WATE) – A Hamblen County man faces charges for being cruel to animals after a woman found her cats dead.
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Investigators say Lamar Jacobs was left alone at the residence of Krystal Purdue in Morristown on July 1, 2015. Jacobs is the father of Purdue’s child. When Purdue came back to the house at 793 Central Church Road, she found Lamar outside vomiting. She claims that Lamar admitted to “scolding” one of the cats for defecating in the house. Purdue saw a small amount of feces near the front door, however, the residence smelled horrible, according to the report.
Lamar told the victim that after drinking a glass of water he became sick, according to Purdue. The report says Lamar claimed one of the cats ran behind the stove. Purdue found the cat with a bloody nose. Investigators say Purdue asked Lamar about the pet’s nose, he said the cat might of ran into the stove.
Purdue claims she noticed her other cats were missing. She called police to force Lamar to leave the residence on July 4, according to the report. Investigators say Purdue thought the suspect was “causing trouble.”
Later that day, Purdue found the other pets dead. She claims King Tut, Pretty Kitty and Midnight were wrapped in a Wal-Mart bag. The bag was inside a trash can outside of the home.
Investigators believe Purdue found cat toe nails and burnt cat hair inside the stove. She says the stove’s odor was as foul as when she found the cat feces.
The U.T. College of Veterinary Medicine performed a necropsy on the three pets. They believe Midnight and Pretty Kitty died of blunt force trauma and more. Singe marks were found on the cats’ bodies and foot pads. Also, blisters were found on the cats’ paws. The cats’ toe nails were missing. Investigators believe the animals were still alive while in the stove.
The report says King Tut died from blunt force trauma.
Also, Purdue claims to have found a broom handle behind her couch. It was dented and broken. She believes the handle was fine when Lamar originally arrived to the house.
