Berlin Zoo chief threatened over kitten killings

BERLIN (Reuters) - German police are investigating after Berlin Zoo reported an anonymous threat against its director following his confession he once killed four kittens by breaking their necks.

Zoo Director Bernhard Blaszkiewitz admitted recently he had killed the wild kittens in 1991, saying they posed a threat to the zoo's animals as they can carry disease.

"I can tell you that the Zoo reported a threat and we are investigating," a Berlin police spokesman said. He declined to give more details.

Blaszkiewitz defended his decision to kill the kittens in a newspaper interview published on Saturday.

"I still think it was the right thing to do," he told daily Die Welt. "Wild house cats are a big danger for people and animals and therefore they cannot be tolerated in (the zoo)."

(Reporting by Iain Rogers)