Pirate, the police cat, and Laurent, his master at night -
Thibaut Chevillard
Pirate is a stray cat who was adopted by officers from a Seine-et-Marne police station in 2016.
Since then, he has become the mascot of the police station: he is appreciated by officials as well as complainants or those in custody.
With its 8,200 subscribers, the tomcat also has a certain notoriety on Instagram.
From our special correspondent in Seine-et-Marne,
Little embarrassed, Pirate jumps on the desk and sprawls in front of the screen.
"He's not really a police cat, because he doesn't do much of the day except sleep," Laurent smiles, stroking him.
At night, it is he who takes care of this one-eyed cat, who entered the life of the agents of this Paris region police station in the summer of 2016. “We did not decide to adopt him, it is him. which imposed itself on us, ”continues the policeman.
Since then, Pirate has had "happy" days.
But the life of this feline, a mixture of Angora and European, has not always been a long calm river.
Four years ago, Laëtitia noticed this stray cat hanging out in the courtyard of the police station.
He was "in a sorry state".
Moved, the policewoman began to feed the "dirty and thin" cat, who seemed "sick".
She took him to a vet who found his left eye was dead.
Aside from this eye problem, Pirate was in good health.
“He just needed care, vaccines,” recalls Laetitia.
The police, who decided to keep him, collectively found him a name: Pirate.
Over time, he began to invite himself inside the police station of which he became the "mascot".
"It is part of the walls", underlines the young woman, who is a bit his "mother".
“It was not us who adopted him, it was he who chose us.
"
"A cat is very relaxing"
Its locker contains reserves of kibble and pâté for cats.
Since the police station is open 24 hours a day, Pirate is never alone in the building.
When Laetitia is not there, Valérie and Béatrice, his “tatas”, take over and feed him.
“He walks around a lot during the day,” explains Valérie.
He is very sociable, he goes to see people at the reception and gets stroked.
"" Everyone finds him nice, observes Laetitia.
There are even some who bring him back kibble.
"
“A cat is very relaxing, it's an anti-stress,” adds Béatrice.
It even seems that the presence of Pirate in the offices helps calm the most irritated in custody.
“Several lawyers told us that it calmed the spirits,” says Valérie.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Pirate, Un chat policier 🔵⚪️🔴 (@lechatpolicier)
Pirate days are nothing but naps in bins or on the hoods of cars, walks, taste buds and meals.
The nights, he spends them with Laurent.
This policeman had the idea, a few months after the arrival of the cat, to create an account for him on Instagram, "for fun".
He bought her several disguises that he puts on her during nighttime photoshoots.
"He keeps them for thirty or forty minutes maximum, he doesn't like that at all!"
"Confidential" in its early days, Pirate's Instagram account is now enjoying some success with its 8,200 followers.
“We didn't expect him to have so many,” says Beatrice.
Paintball shot in the eye
On the social network, Laurent is careful not to give any clues about the precise location of the police station, even if his community is rather "benevolent".
“We wouldn't want people to come here on purpose to see the cat.
On the other hand, some visitors, seduced by the feline with the grizzled coat, leave having subscribed to his account.
“People are always a little surprised to see a cat in a police station, to see it land and jump on a desk,” notes the official.
Often, by reflex, they will stroke it, especially children who like it.
"Pirate has even been recognized in the street by some fans who took pictures of him.
His new notoriety allowed Laurent to find Pirate's mistress, who recognized him in photos.
“She was happy that he was alive and, as she now lives in Haute-Savoie, she told us we could keep him.
A relief for the police officers, who feared having to part with this docile cat to which they were so attached.
According to its former owner, Pirate is 14 years old.
On the other hand, nobody knows exactly how and why he "landed" at the police station.
He lost his eye after receiving a paintball shot to the head in 2012 or 2013. “Our vet told us it didn't need to be taken out.
But the day he will be in pain, he will have to be operated on, ”says Laurent.
An association to raise funds
At the end of 2020, Laurent created the association Le Chat policier whose objective is to raise funds to finance the purchase of food or "possible veterinary care".
He also sells badges bearing the likeness of Pirate, 6 euros without postage.
The first model has sold about 200 copies.
Pirate will probably end his days here, surrounded by Laurent, Laetitia, Valérie or Béatrice.
Even the commissioner who heads the hundred or so officials in this town of Seine-et-Marne seems madly gaga of this tomcat.
But Pirate's heart is no longer to be taken.
It seems he recently met love on an Instagram.
When he sleeps on a desk, he now dreams of cat_patrouille, a "Parisian kitten" who has also taken up residence in a police station ...
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