Reno man arrested in San Francisco for kitten torture and killing, police say

A man was arrested in San Francisco on Tuesday for animal abuse after he tortured a kitten to death, authorities said.

The San Francisco Police Department said in a press release that on July 1 at around 2 a.m., the man entered a Bank of America ATM vestibule at 1844 Market Street with a small kitten. San Francisco Animal Care and Control told police that the man proceeded to violently torture the animal, killing it in the process. He then fled the vestibule, taking the dead kitten with him.

SFACC was the lead agency in the investigation, assisted by the SFPD, and they eventually identified the suspect as 33-year-old William Ohlson of Reno, Nevada. It was also discovered he was staying at The Oak Hotel at 171 Fell Street in San Francisco.

Following a two-week investigation, officers on Tuesday served a search warrant at the hotel. They arrived to find that Ohlson had fled his room and climbed onto the roof of the two-story building next door at 165 Fell Street.

Officers flew a drone over the building to observe Ohlson on the roof, and footage captured by the drone camera showed Ohlson pacing the roof. Though he interacted with police as they leaned through a nearby window and spoke with officers on the ground, he did not leave the roof. San Francisco Fire Department firefighters arrived with a truck and ladder so officers could get on the roof and arrest him without further incident.

Ohlson was booked into San Francisco County Jail No. 1 on charges of animal abuse and neglect and resisting or delaying arrest.

Police asked anyone with information about the incident to contact the department at 415-575-4444 or send a text to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD.