Storrington meat thief named and shamed

But the culprit is showing no remorse for his crimes - and it’s been revealed that he is even likely to strike again.

The crook is Michael Angelo, better known to his family as Mikey - a six-year-old pet cat.

And embarrassed owner Briony Wescott couldn’t bring herself to tell any porkies about his crimes after she discovered him with some crackling on a pathway outside their Storrington home.

“It wasn’t the first time he had come home with crackling,” she said. “He’s done it before.”

She posted a message on social media naming and shaming the meat-munching moggie and apologised for his actions.

“Apparently my cat is partial to some pig skin,” she said.

She included a picture of Mikey with the message: “Photo of the offender included with my full permission to squirt him with a water gun if you catch him entering your abode.”

She said Mikey had come home on a previous occasion with a rack of ribs.

“I’m trying to be pescatarian. He’s obviously a bit annoyed with me because I won’t cook him any meat.

“He’ll go out at night and come back with somebody’s Sunday lunch. I don’t think it will be the last time he will do it either.”

But Briony’s confession of her cat’s crimes has prompted other sheepish cat owners to confess to their own felines’ felonies.

One said: “My cat stole a pork chop out of my frying pan as it was cooking ... I couldn’t afford to throw it away so my husband had it on his dinner.

“No harm done. He didn’t find out.”

Another confessed: “My dad’s old cat used to do things like that, he came home with some fish and chips he’d stolen off someone once.”

And yet another admitted: “We had a cat who came home with someone’s roast chicken and a few large Koi.”

Despite it all Mikey is a much-loved pet who lives with Briony, her partner Tomass, seven-year-old daughter Olivia, and ‘surrogate mother cat’ Reco.

There’s just one member of the family who is a tad wary of Mikey’s antics - pet dog Baxter.

“We had to take him to the vets a few weeks ago because Mikey jumped out and scratched him across the eye,” said Briony.

Could be that Mikey doesn’t want any clever canines witnessing his misdeeds.

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