A student in Sarawak who posted a video of himself tossing a cat into the air on TikTok five days ago was arrested at his home yesterday.
Police told reporters today that the 19-year-old, known on TikTok as @Saxsalah, had admitted to capturing the clip near the Sundar Waterfront on Dec. 4 and putting it up on the same day, saying that he did so to avoid being scratched. The clip is no longer available on the platform. The unnamed student is being investigated for animal cruelty and posting offensive content online.
“The suspect admits that he and a friend were involved in making the TikTok clip near the Sundar Waterfront area on 4 Dec.,” Lawas police spokesperson Roslan Leman told the press.
He added: “When filming the video, the suspect held a cat in his arms and threw it into the grassy field behind him. The suspect said he threw the cat to avoid being scratched.”
The offending clip has resurfaced on other platforms and shows the student holding the cat before tossing it to the grass field behind him. The video ended with the cat flying in the air in slow-motion.
The video caught the attention of the Malaysian Animal Association NGO, who shared the clip on Facebook on Friday, condemning the student’s “cruel” actions.
“Without knowing it, this user committed a cruel act that could hurt, traumatize and even kill the animal,” it said.
Other stories to check out:
Reader Interactions