Source: OT-Team(G), 钱江晚报
Beijing's first pet-poisoning lawsuit has been delayed for years, and a verdict is finally on the horizon.
"This Is a Criminal Prosecution."
The speaker is Penny, a Beijing resident and former owner of Papi, a 13-year-old West Highland White Terrier.
For Penny, the winter has felt unending. More than three years have passed since Papi died of poisoning, yet the criminal case—accusing a man surnamed Zhang of fatally poisoning nine pet dogs and two stray cats and of "intentionally releasing hazardous substances"—has remained unresolved since its first hearing in October 2023.
According to Penny, the case has now entered its ninth extension. The new deadline is December 17, 2025.
In the three years since, she has left her job at a film and television company, taught herself law, become an advocate for victims, and unexpectedly found herself the focus of a high-profile social media following of nearly 500,000 people.
Panic Spread Through the Neighborhood as Pets Collapsed
For Penny, September 14, 2022, marked a before-and-after.
Before that day, Papi was a member of the family and her companion of 13 years. Afterward, Papi became the starting point of a criminal investigation.
It was a Wednesday.
At 8 a.m., Penny took Papi out for their usual walk. Fifteen minutes later they returned home; she fed him and left for work. Shortly after 10 a.m., a message from a Shiba Inu owner in the same residential compound shattered the morning routine: a small dog had died, suspected of poisoning.
Anxiety quickly spread. Around midday, Penny's family told her that Papi was showing signs of poisoning.
She rushed home and immediately transported Papi to a large veterinary hospital in Shunyi capable of performing hemodialysis, hoping for a last chance.
Papi struggled to breathe and required oxygen the entire way.
At 13 years old, Papi was already a senior dog. Penny had intentionally rented an apartment beside a pet-friendly park to give him a better life. "That weekend, we were supposed to take him to the seaside," she said softly.
After 10 hours of emergency treatment, Papi did not survive.
Meanwhile, panic rippled through the neighborhood. Pet dogs and stray cats continued collapsing. In total, 11 dogs were poisoned, nine fatally. Two stray cats also died.
"Children were afraid to touch the ground, and everyone held their dogs tightly in their arms," Penny recalled. It became clear to her that this was no ordinary accident—it was deliberate poisoning.
She reported the case to police and began reaching out to other affected pet owners. Soon, the 11 families formed a joint plaintiff group.
By late September, a 65-year-old male resident of the compound, surnamed Zhang, was taken into custody. The Chaoyang District People's Procuratorate later charged him with the crime of "releasing hazardous substances."
Zhang allegedly told police he "did not like dogs" and used poison to "solve the problem." Investigators later found multiple toxic pesticides and rodenticides in his possession.
The substance involved was sodium fluoroacetate, once used in pesticides and rodenticides.
Public data show the compound is extremely toxic: the median lethal dose for dogs is just 0.06 mg/kg, for cats 0.2 mg/kg, and for humans 0.5–2.0 mg/kg. Fatality can occur through inhalation or simple skin contact.
China banned sodium fluoroacetate in 2019, when the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs listed 46 pesticides prohibited from use—including the chemical found in this case.
"How did Zhang obtain it?" Penny and the other families wanted to know. Later, they learned he had purchased it at a large open-air market in Tongzhou.
Two Years After the First Hearing, Still Waiting
On October 26, 2023, the high-profile case opened for trial at the Wenyu River Criminal Court of the Chaoyang District People's Court.
Penny told reporters that defendant Zhang admitted to poisoning the animals but claimed there was no causal link between his actions and the dogs' deaths. "He contradicted himself—saying he hated dogs, then that he loved dogs, then 'I alone will take responsibility,'" she recalled.
All 11 pet owners attended the hearing, believing that once the trial began, justice would soon follow. Instead, they continued waiting.
Penny repeatedly sought updates from the court, but the answer remained: "Further assessment is required."
The prolonged process has taken a serious toll. Penny has experienced severe depression, anxiety, and insomnia, yet continues to pursue the case. "Is the price I paid worth it? Legally and socially, yes. Personally, no." About six months after the incident, she resigned from her job to focus entirely on advocacy.
She insists this is not a "pet dispute." "It is a case of endangering public safety by releasing hazardous substances. There is a law, and it should be applied."
According to attorney Huang Honglian of Shanghai Jinglin Law Firm, the delay may stem from disagreement among the trial panel or adjudication committee regarding legal characterization.
Because "releasing hazardous substances" is a serious public-safety offense, courts must exercise exceptional caution. The key question, Huang explained, is whether placing poison in a residential compound constitutes a danger "sufficient to seriously endanger the safety of an unspecified number of people or major public property."
He noted that if the poison were intended to harm people, the charge would be straightforward. But if the intent was limited to animals, judges must consider the actual risk to the public—such as the possibility of children or residents coming into contact with the substance.
Attorney Han Yi, a longtime advocate for animal rights, similarly emphasized that whether the crime is established depends on the degree of social harm posed by the poisoning.
On the broader issue of pesticide sales, attorney Fu Jian of Henan Zejin Law Firm told reporters that while not all pesticides are restricted, those classified as "restricted use" require strict licensing and designated sales channels. Transport of pesticides and hazardous chemicals is also regulated, requiring properly qualified carriers and vehicles.
Fu added that online sales of pesticides require proper licensing and platform oversight. Restricted-use pesticides—such as bromadiolone—cannot be sold online at all. Platforms that fail to verify seller credentials or block illegal products may face penalties under the E-Commerce Law and Online Transaction Supervision Measures.
He emphasized the need for greater public education regarding the government's "banned and restricted pesticide" directory, especially for farmers and agricultural suppliers, and urged consumers to purchase pesticides only through authorized channels.
On December 5, when contacted by reporters, the Chaoyang District People's Court said the case remained pending and declined to provide further information.
A Verdict Finally Approaches
On December 8, Penny posted a short video with the message she had been waiting years to hear: the court has scheduled the verdict for December 17. After repeated delays, the date offers the first glimmer of resolution for the families who have endured an unexpectedly protracted legal battle.
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