Cypriot former human rights lawyer Katherine Theodotou, aged 79, said she would be suing the Met police and the royal society for the prevention of cruelty to animals (RSPCA) after her disabled cat was seized and died in foster care soon after.

According to Theodotou, she was pushed to the ground violently when officers opened her front door with an axe to seize her cat named ‘Rita’ earlier in March after being issued with a warrant for allegedly neglecting the animal.

Theodotou denies mistreating her cat, saying she had “pampered” her at home, paying for two private nurses and a physiotherapist to care for the disabled animal and said she had fallen victim of “malicious reporting”.

The case was heard in court earlier this month after Theodotou applied for an injunction to prevent the RSPCA from euthanising the cat, with the latter insisting that it had no intention of doing so.

According to the Daily Mail, the RSPCA’s Mark Townsend told the judge that Rita had been examined by a vet after being seized and was found to be in what he described as an “extremely concerning” condition, suggesting that she had been left for “prolonged” periods with “inadequate hygiene, nursing care and monitoring within the home environment.”

Two days before the dispute over the ownership of the cat was due to be heard in court, Theodotou was reportedly informed that 17-month-old Rita had died suddenly in RSPCA foster care, turning the dispute over ownership into one over the cat’s remains.

Insisting on explanations regarding the incident, Theodotou took the RSPCA back to the High Court, requesting the return of Rita’s body so that a post-mortem examination could be conducted.

The RSPCA, however, refused to hand over Rita’s remains and said it would carry out its own investigation to get as much evidence as possible.

In a brief hearing on Friday, the court refused to order the handover but instead ordered a jointly conducted post-mortem examination involving both an RSPCA vet and an independent vet chosen by Theodotou.

Speaking on behalf of the court, Justice Kimblin reportedly said the RSPCA had a right under the 2006 Animal Welfare Act to investigate a death, but that Theodotou also had rights as her owner.

“It seems to me the appropriate resolution in this case is for there to be an order that there be no disposal of the body of Rita the cat, nor a post-mortem unless and until the RSPCA has provided notification of the intended date and an invitation for a veterinary surgeon instructed by the claimant to attend jointly with the RSPCA to undertake the post-mortem,” he said.

Kimblin added that this way, both Theodotou and the RSPCA had the opportunity to obtain the information and that thereafter the remains of the cat could be returned to the claimant.

The Daily Mail further reported that Theodotou’s original case was for the return of the cat, but also for damages for harassment and negligence against the RSPCA and for assault, battery, trespass and negligence against the Met police, which has since denied the allegations, saying it had “lawfully executed a warrant of entry” to seize the cat due to welfare concerns.