U.K. woman who threw cat in trash bin issues an apology; threatening Facebook group removed

The woman caught on video dumping a cat in a trash bin in Coventry, England, has been identified by name and is now publicly apologizing.

The incident, captured on surveillance video captured by the cat's owners' security system over the weekend, has inspired outrage in animal lovers worldwide.

The owners launched a Facebook fan page to help identify the gray-haired woman who could be seen petting the cat before opening the bin, depositing her in it and walking away. The fan page had accumulated well over 20,000 fans before it was removed from Facebook sometime after the woman was identified as 45-year-old Mary Bale.

After her identity was revealed on an online message board, a group sprang up on Facebook calling for her death. Facebook acted quickly to remove it, but several less inflammatory groups and fan pages (one example: "The Woman 'Who Put The Cat In A Bin' Should Be Locked In A Bin") remain, some with thousands of fans of their own.

Bale has since said that she is "profoundly sorry" for the incident and the trouble it caused. "I cannot explain why I did this, it is completely out of character and I certainly did not intend to cause any distress to Lola or her owners," the statement, published in full by the BBC, reads in part. "It was a split second of misjudgement that has got completely out of control." She will cooperate fully with investigators with the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, she said.

Police told the BBC that they are monitoring Facebook groups to "assess any threat of harm" to Bale but said that she is not receiving official police protection.

Meanwhile, the cat's owners are asking hot-tempered animal lovers to remain calm. "Now that the police know who she is, I think people should leave it to them and the RSPCA and not take matters into their own hands," owner Stephanie Mann told the BBC. "Whatever she has done, I don't like her, but I don't want her to get hurt."

The cat, a rescued 4-year-old tabby named Lola, suffered no ill effects despite being trapped without food or water for 15 hours.

Mann's husband Darryl found Lola after hearing her meow from inside the bin and has said he initially thought she'd climbed into it on her own and accidentally become trapped. When the couple reviewed the surveillance video to determine what had happened, they were shocked to see that a person had deliberately dropped Lola into the bin.

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-- Lindsay Barnett

Photos: Screen grabs from the video posted on YouTube by the Manns

Comments

[john burgess]

Re lady who put cat in bin According to the news snippet i heard the cat was in the bin for 15 hrs If it was all observed on cctv Why was it left there for 15 hrs??

[GB]

Of Course she is sorry now, she got caught. The cat should not have been available for her abuse. Watch your children, watch your pets...

[Cat Lover]

The woman said she "didn't intend to cause any distress to Lola...": WHAT? Then why throw a living animal into a trash bin, pray tell? I have NO sympathy whatsoever for this evil, cruel, horrible person. That said, I agree with the cat's human adopted parent that a call for non-violence needs to go out and let the proper authorities deal with this horrible woman. I hope she goes to jail, but let the system deal with her. I'm so glad that Lola is okay. Anyone outraged by this, channel it constructively by going out and adopting a shelter cat today. Peace out.

[Jim Smith]

I would like to kill cats because they destroy millions of song birds each year.

If a pit bull was killing cats, we'd want it killed. The same goes for cats.

Cats should not be allowed outside.

[Stephanie Vigil]

What the women did was terrible and there is no excuse for her actions. What i also find disturbing is that it was the owner of the cats surveillance video that captured this cruel act, why did it it take so long to rescue Lola? The bin had to be outside of the apartment. Right?
If there is no explanation to this, I'd say all people involved were at fault.

[Acid Flux]

@ John Burgess: Learn to read, John. Just because the CCTV is recording, doesn't mean someone is monitoring it at all times. The owner came home and heard he cat in the bin. After reviewing the recording, that's when they realized it was not an accident.

"Mann's husband Darryl found Lola after hearing her meow from inside the bin and has said he initially thought she'd climbed into it on her own and accidentally become trapped. When the couple reviewed the surveillance video to determine what had happened, they were shocked to see that a person had deliberately dropped Lola into the bin."

[Eric Driver]

It goes even without saying that the woman is guilty of animal cruelty. Had she not been caught, I don't believe for an instant she'd be apologetic especially given the fact that she's making up excuses for her behavior that are a lame effort to take her off everyone's "monster" list. I see postings here about "cats shouldn't be outside" that I find idiotic to say the least. Some cats can be kept confined and imprisoned indoors in total captivity by their owners but the majority of cats not only should be let outdoors it's their basic rights as an animal to behave in a way consistent to their species. The post about cats killing songbirds and subsequent comparison of that to the hypothetical actions of a pitbull killing someone's cat is a misguided mind's attempt to save face for their lack of common sense. Songbirds are not domesticated animals and therefore will not willingly remain around their human owners without being caged for the single motive of ensuring their captivity knowing full well they would flee their owner's dwelling the very first opportunity they get never to return for any reason one could possibly imagine. Cats hunt birds by instinct and they should not be hated for it. It's the same non remorse I would have for the birds killing of innocent earthworms to feed their young. I have 3 pet cats all of which stay indoors for most of the time but they all want to go outdoors daily to bask in the natural splendor that makes up their cat perception of the world. They chase flying insects and play with everything from fallen leaves to blades of grass. I would dare not deprive them of those moments they deserve to be what they are which is common cats.

[CallistoM]

Are the people leaving comments here really that stupid? Who sits in their house all day watching their security camera footage? Of course they did not witness the act live, they went back and reviewed the footage to see how she got in there!

Also, the idea that you should house bound an animal is truely cruel and to all those people saying this is a perfect reason why cats should be locked in the house should not be allowed to care for an animal. Can you imagine someone locking you indoors for the rest of your life? How would you like it?

[Lisa DeLozio]

She got caught for this attempted "homicide" . how many did she not get caught for/ and what other sinister acts has she committed.. she has a psychotic streak in her obviously that extends to harming others.. she needs investigated . and she should not be left around elderly or children..she has some disconnection . she threw a live animal in a trash bin . if the truck would have came before the man found his cat .. well now that would have turned this into a whole differnt matter....she needs evaluated and monitered.. this isnotthe first living thing she has "disposed" of ..