Police in Buffalo, 470 km from New York, pulled over a car driven by Gary L. Korkuc, 51, from Cheektowaga town, at a traffic signal, when they heard a cat crying from inside the bonnet.
The cat, police said, was in a cage "marinating" in a mixture of crushed red peppers, chili pepper, salt and oil, Buffalo News reported.
"It's disgusting. It surprises me every day what people are capable of when it comes to violence, whether it is animals or people," said Gina M. Browning, director of public relations, Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA).
"I've never heard of anything like this before." Korkuc was arrested on one count of cruelty to animals. He told police the cat had been "mean" to him, and that it was "possessive, greedy and wasteful".
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