Kurt Zouma pleaded guilty in court to kicking a cat

French defender Zouma, who is based at West Ham, has been charged with three offences by the Animal Welfare Act. Kurt Zouma and his brother Yoan pleaded guilty to kicking and slapping a cat after footage emerged of the February incident.

Zouma had previously apologised, yet he lost his place in the national team, his contract with Adidas and was also fined £250,000 by the club. The Bengal cats are still in the care of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA).

Now the West Ham defender is facing three criminal charges for breaching the Animal Welfare Act, according to the BBC.

Tuesday’s hearing took place at Thames Magistrates’ Court, where he appeared alongside his brother Yoan. Twenty-seven-year-old Zouma covered his face on the way to court and had several security guards around him.

Zouma pleaded guilty to two offences of causing suffering to a protected animal by kicking it in the stomach and striking it on the head on February 6.

Zouma’s brother Yoan, who plays for Dagenham and Redbridge, pleaded guilty to one offence following an RSPCA investigation. Twenty-four-year-old Yoan recorded the incident on video, which he later posted on social networking site Snapchat. Sentencing has been adjourned until June 1.

The video was later noticed by a woman who was chatting with Yoan. She reported the incident to Animal Welfare Act.

The young woman who first saw the footage had to cancel her date with Yoan. “I don’t think it’s okay to hit a cat like that.”

Kurt Zouma kicks a Bengal cat in the kitchen. Later, he throws a pair of shoes at her and hits her on the head.

Prosecutor Hazel Stevens told the court that in the video he could be heard saying

Burke said his fine benefited nine animal charities. And Zouma hasn’t made trouble in the past. He said the defender has received numerous death threats and racial slurs, which has “completely disrupted his life.”

Experts say the cat suffered soft tissue damage to its head and mental and physical suffering.

Yoan Zouma admitted to only inciting his older brother to commit the crime.

Source: Twitter, SkyNews, Metro, BBC