NORTH PLATTE, Neb. — A 23-year-old North Platte man is facing several charges after allegedly injuring a kitten and later attacking a police officer during an attempted arrest.
Jonathan Faubel was charged last week in Lincoln County Court with intentional cruelty to an animal, assaulting a police officer in the third degree, and resisting arrest.
Police were initially called to Casey’s General Store on Rodeo Road around 10 p.m. on July 2 after a disturbance was reported. According to court documents, an employee told officers that Faubel—identified as a former worker at the store—had returned and threatened a current staff member while holding a kitten that appeared to be bleeding from the neck. Faubel reportedly claimed he had slit the animal’s throat.
The next day, officers were dispatched to an apartment complex, also on Rodeo Road, following reports of a man yelling and acting erratically in the parking lot. Officers found two kittens nearby—one of which had a deep laceration to its neck, estimated to be between 2.5 and 3 inches long.
During the encounter, authorities say Faubel struck an officer with a broomstick, knocking a flashlight out of the officer’s hand. As officers attempted to place him under arrest, he resisted, leading to a physical struggle before he was subdued and taken into custody.
Faubel is being held at the Lincoln County Jail on $25,000 bond, with 10% required for release. He is scheduled to appear in court on July 17.