The claws are out in a Brooklyn cat-napping case.<\/p>\n
A borough woman who allegedly\u00a0stole a beloved cat from a bodega<\/a>\u00a0was arraigned on petty larceny charges \u2013 and then furiously insisted Wednesday she was an \u201canimal lover\u201d who was\u00a0unfairly arrested<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m going to sue them for accusing me of stealing,\u201d Mary Sierra told The Post after being released without bail.<\/p>\n Eight Street Mini Market owner Imad Innab is reunited with his stolen cat, \u201cJabal,\u201d on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2026, in Park Slope, NYC. Paul Martinka for NY Post<\/p>\n Store owner Imad Innab, 60, whose kitten Jabal was stolen from the 8th St Mini Mart bodega on Sunday, Sept. 13, 2026, in Park Slope, Brooklyn. Obtained by NY Post<\/p>\n Alleged Park Slope bodega catnapper Maria Sierra and her male companion are seen in the Bushwick subway station on Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2026. Paul Martinka for NY Post<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m an animal lover. I got three rescue dogs,\u201d she said. \u201cI went to jail yesterday for this s\u2014t. I went to jail! They locked me up, they locked me up for this s\u2014t. I did not steal the f\u2014ing cat.\u201d<\/p>\n The three-month-old kitten was nabbed from 8th St. Mini Mart in Park Slope on Thursday, with surveillance video capturing two people walking away with the cat.<\/p>\n Jabal\u2019s owner, Imad \u201cJimmy\u201d Innad, scoffed at Sierra\u2019s claims.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s gonna sue who? Sue me or the cat?\u201d he said. \u201cI wish she\u2019d sue the cat too. Go ahead! She stole the cat. She knows it\u2019s stealing.<\/p>\n Neighbors convinced Sierra and her companion to return Jabal despite her initial reluctance to do so, warning her that the kitten was someone\u2019s pet, not a stray cat on the streets. Paul Martinka for NY Post<\/p>\n \u201cEven if she thought it was a stray cat, after\u00a0 they told her no, she should have brought the cat back and said, \u2018Sorry, here is your cat,\u2019 end of story. But she took the cat and ran away.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite saying she wasn\u2019t guilty of the charges, Sierra did admit to The Post that she took the cat.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with all you need to know\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMorning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \u201cThat store wasn\u2019t open at 7 a.m. I saw the cat four houses away and picked up the cat and I took him home with me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n However, neighbors convinced Sierra and her companion to return Jabal despite her initial reluctance to do so, warning her that the kitten was someone\u2019s pet, not a stray cat on the streets.<\/p>\n The beloved bodega cat Jabal was returned to Innab after being stolen from the store. Paul Martinka for NY Post<\/p>\n Sierra eventually decided to return the cat \u2014 whether out of compassion or fear of being charged\u2013\u2013 but rather than doing so herself, she had her stepson deliver the kitten to the 78th Precinct stationhouse on Tuesday.<\/p>\n Police then took Sierra into custody, and she was arraigned later in the day on charges of petty larceny, criminal possession of stolen property and \u201ccompanion animal stealing,\u201d according to a criminal complaint.<\/p>\n The last charge is a violation under state Agriculture and Markets Law, which makes it illegal \u201cto remove or cause to be removed\u201d a dog or cat or to take ID tags from the animals.\u00a0<\/p>\n Innab, 60, said he was just thrilled to have the kitten back \u2014 and said he already ordered an ID tag with his name and contact info, and will look to see if the cat is old enough to have a chip implant.<\/p>\n However, Sierra maintains she\u2019s being railroaded.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s embarrassing, because everybody knows I didn\u2019t steal the f\u2014ing cat,\u201d she told The Post.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The claws are out in a Brooklyn cat-napping case. 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