‘Disgraceful’ Zouma escapes a jail sentence over cat attack
KURT ZOUMA, the Premier Leauge footballer, escaped a jail sentence yesterday when he was handed a community service order for causing unnecessary suffering to a cat. He could have been sent to prison for five years.
The West Ham defender, 27, was widely criticised after footage posted on social media showed him kicking the family pet across his kitchen, throwing shoes at it, slapping its head and saying: “I swear I’ll kill it.”
His two male Bengal cats are now being rehomed.
District Judge Susan Holdham described Zouma’s behaviour as “disgraceful and reprehensible” as she sentenced him to 180 hours’ of community service, banned him from owning cats for five years and ordered him to pay £9,000 in court costs. He showed no emotion as he was handed the sentence at Thames magistrates’ court in east London, where he was greeted by a man in a cat outfit (inset right).
The France international pleaded guilty last week to two counts of causing an animal unnecessary suffering after he blamed the family pet for damaging a chair. The court was told the “premeditated” attack was filmed in February by his brother, Yoan Zouma, 24, who plays for National League club Dagenham & Redbridge. He had sent the footage to a woman he was hoping to date. She was shocked and called off their meeting, telling him: “I don’t think hitting a cat like that is OK – don’t bother coming.”
The court heard Yoan had 80 followers on Snapchat and five accounts had viewed the film before it was deleted minutes after being posted. Yoan admitted one count of aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring his older brother to commit an offence. He was handed a 12-month community order, ordered to carry out 140 hours of unpaid work. He could also have been jailed.
Passing sentencing, the district judge said: “You took part in this disgraceful and reprehensible act … others look up to you and many young people aspire to emulate you.”
Since the incident, Kurt Zouma had lost a “substantial” Adidas sponsorship deal and had been fined two weeks wages (£250,000) by his club and dropped by France, the court heard.
A West Ham United spokesman said the club hoped Zouma would be given the “chance to learn from his mistake”.