Caught on camera: Five cats abandoned outside East Bay shelter, officials say

(KRON) — Two people were allegedly caught on camera abandoning five teenage cats outside the Antioch Animal Services shelter around 7 p.m. Wednesday.

Antioch Animal Services is asking for the public’s help identifying the pair, so officials can potentially charge them with abandonment.

“When we post animals dumped outside of our facility, we get told, ‘You should get cameras!” Antioch Animal Services wrote on social media Thursday. “We have cameras, very good ones, and a great crime analyst to grab license plates and more.”

According to the animal shelter, the cats suffered through a frightening night outside. One of the cats is missing after the ordeal.

“We watched their scary night unfold: Raccoons, who pulled their makeshift bowl out of the crate, other cats taunted them, growled at them, our sprinkler system soaked them this morning at 5 a.m. and then an unhoused resident ‘set them free’ and scared them into the bushes,” Antioch Animal Services said.

Watch the security footage in the video at the top of this story. Anyone with information about the suspects’ identities is asked to email ccottle@antiochca.gov.