Suspected Miami cat killer caught, police say

MIAMI (Reuters) - A teenager has been arrested in a string of cat killings and mutilations that horrified residents of Miami's southern suburbs, police said on Sunday.

Tyler Weinman, 18, of Cutler Bay, Florida, was charged with 19 counts of animal cruelty, 19 counts of improperly disposing of an animal body and four counts of burglary.

Police have said more than two dozen pet and stray cats were killed at night in the Palmetto Bay and Cutler Bay neighborhoods during the past two months. In some cases, the cats were skinned or gutted and the corpses left on the lawns or driveways of their owners.

"I sincerely hope that with this arrest, the residents will feel relieved and their cats will be safe once again," Miami-Dade County State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said. "It is expected that the vicious crimes that have plagued these communities will not be repeated."

The killings had put residents of the areas on high alert and prompted them to take their own cats and strays into their homes at night. The Humane Society and Crimestoppers both offered rewards for information leading to the killer's capture.

(Reporting by Jim Loney)