Man to testify against wife in cat abuse case

FARMINGTON, Mo. -- A suburban St. Louis man has agreed to testify against his wife in an animal cruelty case in which cats were allegedly left to starve.

James Sobelman, 50, of Olivette, pleaded guilty Friday to a misdemeanor charge. He was sentenced to two years of unsupervised probation.

St. Francois County prosecutors said his wife, Natalie Peplin-Sobelman, 43, faces felony charges in the case.

In February, police went to a rural trailer in northern St. Francois County on a tip. They found 26 living and eight dead cats. Investigators said they think the Sobelmans decided to end their cat-breeding business. They said the animals were left unattended for weeks to die. Many of the animals survived by drinking melted snow that leaked into the trailer and by eating one another.