PUTNAM COUNTY, Fla. — A 36-year-old man was arrested after deputies found newborn kittens abandoned in plastic bags inside a trash can at a Hawthorne residence, according to the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies responded Saturday to a welfare check after a witness reported hearing kittens crying from a garbage can. The witness removed two plastic bags and discovered five newborn kittens inside.
A neighbor at the property told deputies he had installed a video camera and captured Tyler Holtz placing the bags into the trash can, authorities said.
Deputies reported the kittens still had their umbilical cords attached and appeared to be only a few hours old. Putnam County Animal Control responded and estimated the kittens were about five hours old. The mother cat was not located.
The witness who discovered the kittens took them for emergency care due to the absence of the mother.
Holtz was arrested and charged with five counts of animal cruelty for abandoning animals to die. He was transported to the Putnam County Jail and held on a $12,500 bond.
Deputies later learned that four of the kittens had died. One remains under treatment at a veterinary office in Ocala.