French police discovered a house that was quickly dubbed a "house of horror" after they found over 100 dead cats stored inside a refrigerator. According to details published by the British newspaper "Metro," police were called to the town of "La Roquette-sur-Siagne," near Cannes in southern France, after an animal protection group noticed "strong odors" and heard a lot of meowing coming from inside the home.
When officers opened the refrigerator, they found dozens of cat corpses stuffed inside. The 66-year-old man living there told them he loved his cats and wanted to give them eternal life, so he kept each cat that died inside his refrigerator at home. A source familiar with the investigation stated, "The man did not believe he had done anything wrong; he sees it as letting the cats sleep."
Animal protection agents revealed that 38 other cats, including 12 kittens and one pregnant cat, were found alive around the man's home. Some showed various signs of distress, while others had different injuries and suffered from malnutrition. The source said, "The cats had been living in the man's dirty house for years and were all in extremely poor condition." They added, "It was a true house of horror. Other cats were found buried in the garden."
The man was arrested last Tuesday and was interrogated throughout the night before being released under judicial procedures. The French animal protection group had been investigating the situation in the home since last December and managed to gather enough information to feel compelled to alert the police and request a search of the place.
The group was also aware of previous complaints about animal mistreatment at the same location from 2019 to 2021 when 58 cat corpses were found. A spokesperson for the animal rights group said, "We investigated, smelled strong odors, and heard a lot of meowing, so we contacted the police, who came to observe. After two months, the police obtained a search warrant and raided the house."
