Cats think they own the night; it is the owl.
A owl will clip off the paws, open the rib cage and eat the entrails.
There are some very big owls in WA.
But one can tell the difference between an animal kill...and a knife.
We had that problem when I lived in Pawnee County Oklahoma.
Raccons will kill more cats than they can eat.
Surprised this hasn’t been put forward. Maybe if they did, folks would think the police are brushing off the folk’s concerns.
If the corpses are found in a discrete locale, maybe they can set up cameras to cover open spaces where a perp would drop a cat or an owl would catch/feed on one.
When I read the story, I thought the perp might be a predator, perhaps a bird of prey.
Chupacatra?
We had a series of pet mutilations and we thought it was coyotes, but after reading your description it could have been an owl. We have those as well as bobcats.
This is the third year in a row that I have had a pair of tiny owls that spend their days on perches only 5-6ft. above ground under my partially covered patio. My small backyard is all trees, ivy and native grapevine.
If I’m quiet, I can walk out and get within 3 feet of the male, which is only about 9” tall. We look at one another and I talk softly to him, then turn away and return to the house. ....If I startle them, they quickly glide away through the tree branches and, unlike most birds, THEY ARE SILENT.
I’ve found remains of dead rats, small snakes and large lizards some mornings when I open my rear entry garage door, so those tiny owls are beneficial and eating well. I only wish they were a little larger so they could dispatch the dozens of squirrels (I also get rabbits and possums). ....I live in a quiet neighborhood in the DFW area and only have a 1/4 acre lot, but the small wildlife is everywhere.