UK Cat Killer: Potential breakthrough in hunt for culprit as man arrested on suspicion of animal mutilations

Police hunting the person who has been mutilating and killing cats in west London and other parts of the country may have found their man.

Officers in Northamptonshire have arrested a 31-year-old man on suspicion of carrying out cat mutilations and arsons.

He was arrested after five cats from Northampton had their heads cut off before being left for their owners or members of the public to find.

The killings are being investigated in connection with similar cases across the country as part of a Metropolitan Police probe, reports the Bristol Post .

One year-old Rusty was left in a plastic bag on the owner's doorstep in August and was discovered by the family's 14-year-old daughter.

The mutilated remains of 15-year-old Topsy were then found outside its owners house in a carrier bag in September, a day after it went missing.

Two more unnamed cats were found in October, before the headless body of a decapitated cat was found on top of its owner's car in November.

Police believe one person has been killing and mutilating hundreds of cats across the country since October 2015, when the first mutilated moggies were found in Croydon.

The Met and SNARL (South Norwood Animal Rescue and Liberty) say more than 400 animals, including rabbits, foxes and deer, have been killed in this manner since 2015.

The killer has been prolific in London and the south east and carried out attacks in the likes of Northolt , Hayes and Kingston .

Animal charity the RSPCA said: “The RSPCA takes all calls about animal welfare very seriously and there is a dedicated team continuing to work closely with the police, who are leading on this matter.

"We continue to look into all evidence given to us surrounding cat deaths to see if there is deliberate cruelty involved.

“In most instances, injuries are caused by road traffic collisions and predation by wildlife on the body of a dead animal, rather than from deliberate human involvement.”

Metropolitan Police detective sergeant Andy Collin has previously said that the killer could begin targeting humans if they stop getting gratification from mutilating animals.

SNARL has said: "This is an ongoing, complex investigation."

Keep up to date with the latest news in west London via the free getwestlondon app.

You can set up your app to see all the latest news and events from your area, plus receive push notifications for breaking news.

Available to download from the App Store or Google Play for Android .