CHICAGO (STMW) — A Chicago man accused of torturing and killing a mouse and rat and posting the acts on YouTube told a Cook County judge Saturday he works in “garbage” and often collects rodents, the Chicago Sun-Times is reporting.
Michael Semens, 24, allegedly posted one video showing him cutting off a portion of a live rat’s tail and later cut off both of the rat’s ears with surgical scissors, according to a police report.
A second video showed Semens Tasing a live mouse on a glue trap until it was dead, police said.
When police arrested him Friday, he told police, “I know I messed up. I shouldn’t have done it,” according to a police report.
Judge Donald Panarese Jr. on Saturday allowed Semens to be released on a $10,000 individual recognizance bond but he must remain on electronic monitoring while awaiting trial.
Before setting the bond, Panarese asked Semens what he did for a living: “I literally work in garbage. If I see a rat, I catch it,” Semens said.
Semens, of the 2100 block of West 22nd Place, has no criminal history. Upon his arrest, he told police the nine-volt Taser used in the video was in his girlfriend’s purse.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2014. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
