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Serial Cat Killer on the Prowl? Prosecutors Say Sean Lynde Tortured, Murdered Girlfriend's Cats

(Family Photo)
NEW YORK (CBS/AP) New York prosecutors believe graphic designer Sean Lynde is a serial cat killer, who tortured his girlfriend's cats, forced laundry detergent down their throats and snapped their necks. They say his girlfriend, now his ex, kept replacing her dying pets, not realizing the killer was in her midst.

Photo: Bonifide and Emo were murdered.

But despite pleading guilty to aggravated animal cruelty in a Manhattan court this week, Lynde will remain on the loose.

The 36-year-old admitted killing only one kitten named Bonafide by breaking his neck in Jan. 2009. He was initially charged with killing five of the woman's cats, and torturing a sixth after moving into her apartment in Oct. 2008.

Three days after moving in with the woman, she found one of her cats dead behind a dryer with a broken jaw, a mouth full of laundry detergent and head trauma from being beaten, animal welfare authorities reported. Over the next four months, four more cats died of serious injuries.

State Supreme Court Justice Michael Obus told Lynde he must attend weekly therapy sessions, and stay away from his ex-girlfriend among other conditions, or the case could re-open and he could face up to two years in prison. Until then, he remains free.

Lynde admitted violating a previous order of protection by posting online messages aimed at his ex-girlfriend.

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