A 52-year-old woman named Sharon Claire Price from West Street, Epsom, was found guilty of trapping 23 cats inside a wheelie bin. Shockingly, 15 of the cats were left standing on top of the corpses of the eight that had died due to being crushed under the weight of the other cats and soaked in animal waste. Price used an old microwave to weigh down the lid of the bin, leaving the cats with no food or water. She has been prohibited from owning cats or dogs for the next ten years.
Upon discovery by local housing association staff, the cats were rescued by Cats Protection charity workers and taken to a vet. The surviving cats were in a dire state, severely dehydrated, underweight, and infested with fleas. They had been kept in complete darkness inside the bin, enduring high temperatures and a strong smell of ammonia.
During sentencing at Kingston Crown Court, Price received a suspended four-month prison sentence for two years. Additionally, she was mandated to complete 10 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days and fined £1,000 for costs associated with the investigation and prosecution by the RSPCA.
A veterinarian revealed the extreme suffering the cats endured, with those at the bottom of the pile being slowly crushed and suffocated. The cats higher up were tangled in a metal grid with no means of escape, forcing them to stand or lie on the bodies of the deceased cats. Price claimed she had been advised by another animal charity to place the cats in the bin when she was moving out of a property in July 2024, but an RSPCA investigation refuted this claim.
RSPCA Inspector Liz Wheeler expressed deep shock at the ordeal the cats had to endure and emphasized the significant and unnecessary suffering caused by trapping them inside the bin. The surviving cats are now under the care of the RSPCA and Cats Protection. Price, who cited mental and physical health issues, was revealed to assist in caring for her two daughters with mental health conditions.