HOUSTON – A 29-year-old Sugar Land man, identified as a former Fort Bend Independent School District teacher, has admitted to torturing cats and then killing them because it made him “feel powerful,” according to Fort Bend County court documents.
Graham William Reid is charged with four counts of cruelty to non-livestock animals after authorities say in court documents that he killed his cats Cabbage, Parsnip, Carrot and Broccoli after torturing them.
The animals sustained injuries such as broken teeth, bloodied toes and cut tails, among other injuries including respiratory issues and broken bones. After visits to local veterinarians, Reid would later say the animals had died at home, court documents say.
He was arrested on April 28 and is now out on $25,000 bond.
Records indicate that a veterinarian who came forward to report the incidents said multiple cases of severe injury like this “(didn’t) add up,” but added that it was “odd” that Reid brought the animals to the vet if he was the one causing the injury and didn’t know what was really happening at Reid’s home.
Court documents say Reid told an investigator that he killed the cats as a means to feel powerful because he was bullied and oppressed as a child and has a need to feel powerful. He added that he would become enraged with “various stressors in life,” documents show.
Reid, according to official documents, admitted to hitting one of the cats with a metal workout bar on two or three occasions. Reid is said to have indicated that he felt remorseful for hurting and killing the cat so he took it to the vet where it was cremated.
The document further indicates he then got another cat, kicked it and repeated the same behavior as the first cat with the workout bar and then disposed of the animal in the dumpster. A third cat reportedly scratched Reid and he slammed it with a scratching post. The cat died after it began vomiting.
Reid then obtained a 4-month old kitten. When it went to the bathroom outside of the litter box, Reid said, according to court documents, that he attacked it with the litter scoop, using it as a hammer to kill the animal.
The animals were killed from October 1, 2020 through March 3, 2021, according to court documents. Reid is due in court on June 14.
Fort Bend ISD issued this statement to KPRC 2:
We have been made aware of a disturbing animal cruelty allegation against a teacher who is no longer employed with the District. We are unable to comment further as the matter involves an ongoing criminal investigation. Please know the safety and security of our students is our top priority and we are taking steps to safeguard the emotional well-being of our students by making well-trained counselors available to the teacher’s former students.