Indirect violence refers to harm directed at another living being, often children, rather than the direct target of the abuser. It involves inflicting greater pain on the victim. It is important to note that this extends beyond humans to animals as well. The field of violence includes acts of animal abuse that accompany broader abuse, and it often appears alongside violence against women. Abusers sometimes use harm to pets to manipulate and dominate their partners, striking at what matters most to the survivor, including beloved animals like a dog, a cat, or, in this case, a white rabbit.
A. alleged harasser, resident of Montserrat, faced a sentence close to twelve years for multiple violent offenses against women, including habitual abuse, injuries, ongoing threats, and crimes against moral integrity. One particularly shocking act involved slaughtering his partner’s rabbit in front of her, claiming it was a punishment to teach her a lesson. He rubbed blood from the animal’s face, cooked the carcass, and tried to feed it to his victim, all described as a chilling “lesson” for spitting on him.
For this last crime, the Ministry of Finance filed against the defendant an eighteen-month imprisonment term, along with a three-year ban from owning or dealing with animals. This case is cited among numerous incidents of mistreatment alleged by the defendant during a period when authorities were building the case. The Civil Guard reported ongoing abuse toward his partner within the first months of their relationship, including hits with a stick when disagreements arose about clothing choices, threats to burn her alive in the fireplace, and torture while she faced a constant demand for subservience. The aim appeared to be to subjugate her and establish control over her life, an outcome rooted in gender-based fear and domination.
Prosecutors assert that the acts extended through October 2021, occurring in a Montserrat residence after about a month of dating, when the couple began living together. A particularly chilling accusation involved a threat to throw her alive into the fireplace and to force her to kneel on rice for an hour as a form of intimidation.
In another episode in Rioja hostel, the defendant reportedly used a stick to strike his partner’s head, arms, and legs. Despite the severity, the victim chose not to seek medical care or report the incident at the time, convinced that things would change. A month later, after another dispute at Montserrat’s home, the defendant bound her arms and legs, forced her face toward the ground, and tauntingly warned that he could cut her throat and throw her into the fireplace. These details, recounted by the victim and summarized by prosecutors, form the basis of the provisional decisions in the case.
The torture continued as the victim was forced to kneel on rice for an hour, and she was struck with a stick while crouched. There is little medical documentation of the injuries, and the testimony of the survivor is central to the trial process.
“I deserved to die because I spit on him”
At the end of December 2021, an incident provoked renewed anger from the defendant. The victim told investigators that she had accidentally spit on him while removing hair with a dryer. His violent reaction was immediate. He produced a knife and pressed it to her neck, threatening to kill her and to burn her in the fireplace, declaring that she “deserved to die because she spat on him.” He then disposed of her teeth in the field so that no one would know what happened. It was on that day that the defendant allegedly targeted the partner’s pet, a white rabbit. He slit the rabbit’s throat with the same knife used to threaten her, forcing her to witness the killing. When the animal died, the defendant cooked it and asked her to eat it as a cruel form of “lesson.”
After a final violent episode in which the survivor sustained an injury to her left eye, she reported the months of abuse to the police. The Civil Guard collected her account, and the survivor indicated that fear and threats about future violence kept her from leaving or reporting earlier, including warnings that the abuser would search for her even under stones. The threat extended to harm her family, with the implication that others could be at risk if she spoke out.