Pest Control Worker Caught Kicking Cat in Disturbing Video

A video of a pest control worker kicking a cat off a front porch has sparked outrage on social media, as footage of the incident was caught on a security camera.

The video sees a man—wearing the uniform of a Las Vegas-based pest control company—walking up to a front porch while a black cat strolls alongside him. The cat stops on the porch to drink water, and once the man reaches the porch, he turns around, leans against the wall, and kicks the cat.

The cat flies through the air and lands further down the path, before running away from the house. The man then leaves the porch appears to walk around the side of the house.

Twitter user @BookofJonah shared the video on Twitter, where it has been viewed 60,000 times, and said: "Friend of mine sent me this video of a 'Williams Pest Control' representative kicking his neighbor's cat in the Centennial area. Wtf."

The video was initially posted on the Ring Neighbors app by Aaron Aguilar, with the message: "Williams Pest Control representative. Been working with them for the last three weeks to right this wrong with no progress."

Aguilar told ABC 13 KTNV that the incident occurred in May, but he shared the video on Sunday, June 13, after feeling as though the company didn't take his concerns seriously.

Royce Williams, the president of Williams Pest Control, told the media outlet that he did apologize and communicate with Aguilar, but refused to give him the name of his employee.

According to News 3 Las Vegas, two statements were posted to the Williams Pest Control Facebook page but were later deleted. One post reportedly said that the man in the video is not an employee "but is spending time with me as I'm helping him get back on his feet."

Another post reportedly said: "We are deeply horrified by the actions of this young man. This person is not a part of our company in any capacity. We are in the process of filing charges against him."

Williams says the man in the video apparently went off on his own to try and solicit clients, without his knowledge, when the incident occurred.

Late on Monday night, Williams Pest Control said in a statement posted to Facebook that the man is "no longer affiliated with our Company, he was an uncompensated trainee. Williams Pest Control does not condone animal cruelty and are taking this matter extremely seriously."

The pest control company also said: "The behavior shown is not indicative of our company values. We take great pride in servicing our community and want every customer to feel safe in the services our technicians and representatives provide.

"Please accept our sincere apology and know we are striving to improve and rebuild your trust."

Social media users have alleged that the man in the video is the son of the company's owner, but in an earlier statement that has since been deleted, Williams Pest Control reportedly denied these claims.

Newsweek has contacted Williams Pest Control for comment.