Marinated Cat Gets New Name, New Home

(NewsCore) - America’s famously flavored feline found a friend.

The cat who narrowly escaped death after its owner prepared it for a meal in a marinade of crushed red peppers and chili had a new home Wednesday, the Buffalo News reported.

Vickie Dankowski, a Buffalo, N.Y., -area woman, took pity on the four-year-old feline formerly known as Navarro after reading about his plight.

"I woke up [Tuesday] and read the article in The Buffalo News and couldn't believe what I was reading," the paper quoted Dankowski said. "I said, 'I think I might want to adopt him.'"

Police rescued Navarro after finding the cat in the trunk of a Cheektowaga, N.Y., man's car when he was pulled over for allegedly passing a stop sign on Sunday night.

Ferry-Fillmore District officers said they heard the cat crying from inside the trunk and found it in a cage “marinating” in a mixture of crushed red peppers, chili pepper, salt and oil.

Gary L. Korkuc, 51, told police the cat had been "mean" to him and he was planning to make a meal out of the animal because it was ill-tempered.

Navarro was transferred Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA). Korkuc was charged with one count of cruelty to animals and was also charged with passing a stop sign and failure to signal.

The SPCA, which was flooded with offers of adoption, granted Dankowski custody after she arrived at their headquarters to inquire about the possibility of becoming Navarro's new owner.

Along with its new home came a new name: Oliver.

Dankowski was pleased with her new pet, telling the paper “he’s really passive and not aggressive at all.”

"They bathed him so many times to get the spices out, so he feels so soft. He's absolutely beautiful," she added.

Korkuc insisted he was “not crazy” in an interview with a local news reporter, claiming the male cat had “miscarried” and it was sitting in its blood.