A distraught pet owner is seeking justice for his cat after the animal was allegedly shot dead on his property, which borders the Taumarunui golf club.
Geoff Blackmore was clearing some rubbish behind his home in the central North Island town when he noticed a man sitting in a golf cart parked near the edge of some trees bordering the golf club.
Blackmore told Newshub it was then he realised the person in the golf buggy was pointing a gun towards the residential area.
"I was trying to mentally process what I was seeing and briefly thought it was someone shooting birds.
"I was about to call out: 'What are you doing?' - when the gun suddenly fired," he told the news outlet.
It was then Blackmore noticed, to his horror, his cat Vinny flailing about and jumping in pain before falling dead about 10m from where he was shot.
"I screamed: 'That's my pet cat Vinny you just shot'! And he sternly replied: 'Good'," Blackmore said.
Blackmore also uploaded a video of the moments immediately after the alleged incident; showing himself going up to the man and asking him repeatedly why he shot his pet cat.
The alleged shooter - who is seen walking swiftly to his car and trying to avoid Blackmore - can be heard saying he is "pest control".
'I just didn't comprehend what was about to happen'
Blackmore has since created a dedicated Facebook page dubbed "Justice for Vinny the cat" in a bid to have the man prosecuted for his actions.
Blackmore has been keeping supporters updated on the page and also described the heartbreaking moment he went back to where Vinny had died after confronting the man.
"I returned to Vinny and could only shout in despair as his lifeless body lay in front of me."
He remained in a "heavy state of shock and trauma" for the rest of that night, he said, and now feels a sense of guilt at not calling out to the man after initially spotting his gun.
"I just didn't comprehend what was about to happen until it was too late."
