West Ham defender Kurt Zouma has been charged with three offences under the Animal Welfare Act after he was filmed kicking and slapping his pet cat. His younger brother Yuan faces two charges for filming him.
Zouma will appear at Thames Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, where he must answer two charges of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, and one count of breaching animal welfare duty. Yuan, who plays for non-league side Dagenham and Redbridge, will answer charges of aiding and abetting animal cruelty. He has not played for the club since the footage emerged.
When the images first appeared on social media, there was outrage not only in the UK but also in France, where the Zouma siblings are from. West Ham expressed their shock and fined Zouma two weeks’ wages worth GBP 250,000, a response that was criticised as weak by animal rights charities at the time.
Zouma has been allowed to continue playing, but has been subject to booing and chanting, from rival fans as well as elements of the West Ham supporters.
The incident has also cost him more in terms of the loss of personal endorsements, with Adidas terminating their deal with him that was worth GBP 100,000 a year.
Following the attack, the cat was removed by animal welfare officers and was checked by a vet. It had suffered no physical injury and has since been re-homed.
In theory, the pair can be jailed for animal cruelty, but that is unlikely under the circumstances. Instead, they are likely to be given a criminal record each – if found guilty – and will likely have to pay a heavy fine. Zouma has already been barred from keeping animals in the future.
The brothers is probably glad that the case is not being tried in their native France, where the animal rights laws are more stringent. The pair could have faced several years in prison. It may already have cost Zouma any chance of being picked for the French World Cup squad.