Man found not guilty of stealing cat from ex-wife who walked 50 miles wearing Garfield onesie

A jilted husband has been found not guilty of stealing his ex wife's cat, sparking a massive manhunt. Tracy Brewster broke down in the witness stand at ex-husband Jonathan Brewster's trial. Mr Brewster, who has been separated from Tracy for two years, appeared before magistrates in Sevenoaks in connection with the alleged ‘catnapping’. The 45-year-old allegedly bundled Marmie the ginger Tom into his car while his estranged wife Tracy was at work. Magistrates heard he emailed his brother the day before the cat went missing and said: "As for the divorce I'm going to ruin the bitch's life. I won't rest until she's lost everything like she did to me."


Photo from SWNS.

The Crown claimed that Brewster planned to take Marmie all the way back to his flat on the other side of London but he said he "felt bad" and dumped it 250 yards up the road. He allegedly took it from her home in Maidstone, Kent, in July last year - and it was not found until November when it was spotted wandering near the M23 in Surrey. Giving evidence Mr Brewster claimed he had taken Marmie in a bid to get Mrs Brewster to start up communications with him again, but changed his mind when the animal began to get stressed in his car. He said: "I didn't intend to hurt her feelings. I wanted Tracy back I wanted the whole thing back.



"I missed the cat like I missed everything." He said he only intended to take Marmie back to his flat in Essex for a few days. Magistrate Carole Findlay said: "We found the cat was owned by Mrs Brewster and initially you denied taking the cat but eventually admitted taking it from the doorstep and at some point released it. It went missing for 16 weeks however we did find that you didn't mean to permanently deprive Mrs Brewster of Marmalade and consider you not guilty." Speaking outside court, Mrs Brewster said: "I'm very disappointed as I went through a horrendous ordeal. He admitted to taking the cat from my doorstep and then he was found at least 35 miles away. I think he wanted to hurt me.



"I knew there was a chance he'd get off but I wasn't expecting it so I'm very disappointed. I'm glad it went to court. People can't just go round taking people's animals because they're upset over a breakup. I think this court case would have cost tens of thousands." Mrs Brewster added: "Marmie had lost a lot of body weight and I don't know how he survived. He's now got a kidney disorder and I'm getting through that. But I'm just so glad to have Marmie back and that's the most important thing." The 52-year-old had launched a major campaign to find her beloved pet and devoted all her spare time to it, at one point completing a 50-mile walk while wearing a Garfield onesie to raise awareness.