'Cat bin' woman receives £250 fine

Former bank worker Mary Elizabeth Bale was today fined £250 after pleading guilty at Coventry Magistrates’ Court to causing unnecessary…

Former bank worker Mary Elizabeth Bale was today fined £250 after pleading guilty at Coventry Magistrates’ Court to causing unnecessary suffering to a cat which she dumped in a wheelie bin.

Ms Bale (45) became an international hate figure in August after CCTV footage emerged of her stroking the four-year-old tabby before picking it up by the scruff of its neck and dropping it into the bin.

Today, she admitted the charge of causing unnecessary suffering when she appeared at Coventry Magistrates’ Court today.

A second charge of failing to provide the cat with a suitable environment, contrary to Britain's 2006 Animal Welfare Act, was dropped.