"It's just a cat!": The conductor at Paris Montparnasse station didn't want to risk a delay because of an escaped animal.

He whistled for the punctual departure and ignored the pleas of the cat owner, who wanted to save the animal that had hidden under a wagon.

A few seconds later, Neko, a fluffy mixed breed cat, was dead: run over by the TGV high-speed train on which he was supposed to be traveling back to Bordeaux with his owner Georgia M. and 15-year-old daughter Melaïna.

Michael Wiegel

Political correspondent based in Paris.

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The case outraged France.

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said on a visit to an animal shelter that he was "extremely shocked".

He reprimanded the state railway SNCF, which acted "heartlessly" and did not respect the rules of animal welfare.

The interior minister wants to train police officers so that they can better fight against animal cruelty.

"Animals are vulnerable, sentient beings who deserve our protection," Darmanin said.

“The acts of violence they sometimes endure are unbearable.

For this reason, I have decided to increase the means of combating this violence, which the French no longer accept.”

Owner Georgia M. wrote a petition that already has more than 71,000 signatures.

She demands that the railways give their employees clear rules on what to do if there are animals on the tracks.

So far, there have been no instructions in terms of animal welfare, it complains.

Four-year-old cat Neko escaped from the carrier bag at Montparnasse train station on January 2 and disappeared under the train.

Despite twenty minutes of negotiations with the staff, they could not prevent the train from departing, as daughter Melaïna said on BFM-TV.

The student said the railway staff had shown no understanding that they wanted to save the cat.

The animal protection organization "30 million friends" has filed a criminal complaint against the state railway SNCF for "serious mistreatment and cruelty that led to the death of an animal".

If it goes to trial, a fine of up to 75,000 euros and a five-year prison sentence could be imposed.

The SNCF said it regretted "the tragic incident".

However, the cat could not be saved, since entering the tracks is strictly forbidden due to the risk of electric shock.