The Fort Lauderdale firefighter-paramedic accused of abducting his neighbor's cat pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor theft and animal-cruelty charges through his attorney this morning.
A judge in the North Regional Courthouse in Deerfield Beach ruled that the case will now go to a jury trial.
The jet-black cat, named Mr. Kibbles, was abducted from his home in the Victoria Isles town-house complex in Coconut Creek, driven for some 15 miles west on Lox Road out to the Everglades, unceremoniously dumped and left to fend for himself.
Not particularly fond of his new surroundings, Mr. Kibbles headed back east. It took him nearly two weeks, but he finally found his way home, his owners said.
He showed up at his owners' doorstep Feb. 18.
Police say Mr. Kibbles' neighbor, Christopher Cortes, 32, admitted to driving the cat to the Everglades after the cat defecated on Cortes' new silver Chevy Silverado pickup.
Cortes' lawyer, James S. Benjamin, of Fort Lauderdale, pleaded not guilty on behalf of Cortes and his fiancee, Iris Zukerman, 31, who also faces misdemeanor theft and animal cruelty charges. Neither Cortes nor Zukerman was in court today.
Benjamin said Cortes had to work today.
