DANIA SHIRLS, Fla. (WFLA) – A Delnier Springs man was arrested this week after he said he set up a trap for a wild cat and killed them at least once.
Deputies began an investigation on Tuesday, July 29, after a neighbor living in the Western violence lane reported a dirty smell coming from a trash can.
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Authorities said the caller also reported seeing “many” cat traps in the area.
The trash was placed on the road earlier that morning. Deputies looked inside and said they had found a dead cat in their bag. Investigators said the cat was covered in blood and appeared to have a large, swollen contempt on the side of its head.
Deputies noticed two armed bait animals traps near the property’s fence line while looking around the area, according to the sheriff’s office.
The gate blocked the entrance to the house, but deputies said they could call Richard Stephen Taylor, 64.
When asked about the trap, deputies said Taylor claimed he had done nothing wrong and that he was allowed to set them up because “the cat is a pest.”
He told deputies he had put out traps to catch stray cats for the past decade, saying, “When killing ******* [he] They’ll catch them, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies said Taylor was “more and more upset” as he spoke to them. They eventually asked him to come out and talk directly to them. Authorities say he did so by wearing only his underwear.
The sheriff’s office passed minutes after Taylor “used blasphemy to blame deputies, called names, and created a threat.”
Lawmakers told Taylor he was arrested, but he refused to leave his fence several times. Authorities said he gave their orders after he allowed him to wear more clothes.
Taylor was charged with aggravated animal cruelty that caused death, causing physical harm and threatened first responders with no violence obstruction. He was booked into the Walton County Jail and later released on a $21,000 bond.
