Operation Cosmic investigates after a cat's body was found in Luton garden

The force set up Operation Cosmic to investigate suspicious animal deaths, after the killings of cats and other pets in and around the M25 area. On Wednesday, May 9, a member of the public discovered a cat’s body in Luton.

A spokesman for the force said: “We received a call from a member of the public on Wednesday, May 9, reporting that the body of a cat had been found in the back garden of his property on St Monica’s Avenue, Luton.

“The details of this incident has been gathered and passed to Operation Cosmic to help build a larger picture of intelligence into such incidents, and to cross reference against any recent reports from cat owners that their pets are missing.”

Boudicca from animal charity South Norwood Animal Rescue Liberty (SNARL) was disappointed with the way the police dealt with the situation.

She said: “When it was reported to the police they did not seem to care, they were not given a crime reference number and they told the man to put the cat in the bin.

“That is disgusting, the force is supposed to be taking this seriously and they are supposed to have a team, operation cosmic, dedicated to investigating these incidents.

“We have reported the incident to the Takahe team. I am really upset about this and the way the police have handled it.

“I am worried that with the police may not taking this matter seriously, how many other cats have been killed in this way in Luton and no one knows about it.”

The incident has also been reported to the Met Police who have been investigating the suspicious animal killings under the name Operation Takahe since 2105, after animal charity SNARL raised concerns.

A spokesman for Bedfordshire Police said: “We take concerns of pet owners extremely seriously and have a dedicated plan - Operation Cosmic - to investigate and identify any links between any reports of suspicious animal deaths to establish the circumstances around them.

“Bedfordshire Police has received four reports of animal deaths in Bedfordshire in the past six months.”

If you have any information that could help the Operation Cosmic investigation, call 101.