Florida Man Crucified Cat, Cops Say

A 21-year-old yoga instructor from Clermont stands accused of crucifying a cat and leaving a grisly display outside a church.

The Clermont Police Department announced the arrest of William Donovan Saunders late Wednesday afternoon via its Facebook page. The Feb. 1 discovery was made outside Real Life Church, 1501 Steve’s Road. It came with a message that called the church a “den of thieves,” according to a department news release.

Police connected Saunders with the crime after speaking to several witnesses, the release stated. Saunders, it seems, did not kill the cat but used its body to make his statement.

“Several witnesses stated that Saunders told them the cat was already dead,” police noted in the release.

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Saunders was charged Wednesday with unlawful disposal of the body of a dead animal and two petty theft charges. He was booked into the Lake County Jail and was being held in lieu of $500 bond, according to jail records.

Saunders was arrested twice last year. In June he was charged with retail grand theft and in August he was booked into the facilities again on retail theft charges, jail records indicate.

Following the cat’s February discovery, the church issued a statement: “We are truly saddened by this inhumane act against one of God’s creatures,” Fox news reported. “While we have no idea what would prompt someone to do something like this, we are praying for them and those affected by it.”

It is unclear if Saunders was a past parishioner at the church.

Booking photo courtesy of the Lake County Jail

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