A North Miami man is facing animal cruelty and resisting arrest charges after police say he was caught on video violently abusing a kitten and later fleeing from officers.
Watner Noel Janvier, 20, was taken into custody on May 14 at his home on NW 136th Street, weeks after a witness reported seeing him stomping on a white kitten and attempting to wedge it into a metal drainage grate near NW 6th Avenue.
According to an arrest affidavit from the North Miami Police Department, the bystander shouted at Janvier, prompting him to grab the kitten and run. The witness captured the incident on video and turned it over to police.
Multiple attempts to arrest the suspect ended in foot chases
Officers initially attempted to arrest Janvier shortly after the April 1 incident, but he allegedly ran from police when they arrived at his home. A second attempt on April 3 also resulted in a foot pursuit, but Janvier again eluded capture, the affidavit stated.
Authorities eventually apprehended him on May 14. During a police interview, Janvier denied trying to harm the animal and claimed the video was misleading.
Janvier was booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. He faces one felony count of animal cruelty and one misdemeanor count of resisting an officer without violence.
Police say the kitten’s condition and whereabouts remain unknown.
