An Oxford man has been charged with animal cruelty after shooting and killing his neighbor’s cat early Sunday morning, according to state police, and he told investigators he thought he'd shot a stray.
Police responded to the duplex on Roosevelt Drive just after 2 a.m. Sunday and said 48-year-old Craig Middendorf told them he was annoyed at what he thought was a stray cat and shot it in his backyard, according to state police.
But, police said, the cat actually belonged to the woman who lives on the other side of the duplex.
Troopers seized Middendorf’s rifle and said he did not have any other guns.
He was charged with cruelty to animals, unlawful discharge of a firearm and first-degree reckless endangerment and bond was set at $2,500.
Middendorf is due in court in Derby on Feb. 5. It’s not clear if he has an attorney.
