The dead kitten was discovered by a Cat Society volunteer.

"The police are trying to show they are investigating recent cases but actually they don't know what to do. The question of where to send [the evidence] is a matter of confusion between different departments," society chairwoman Elaine Chan Ling-yi said.

She also alleged that police officers, when confronted by the society volunteers, admitted they did not know what to do as there was no previous case of such animal cruelty to guide their investigations.

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In the latest case, Chan said, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department officers arrived to dispose of the cat carcass after the society volunteer called the police.

After discussing the matter with the police for two hours, the society was able to secure the carcass for testing with the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department.

An AFCD spokeswoman said that animals and animal remains were referred to her department for forensic tests if there was any suspicion of foul play.

Otherwise, the carcasses were disposed of by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department.

The latest incident follows a spate of attacks against felines, some of which were mutilated or chopped up and others with limbs and joints deliberately disfigured.

An abused cat named Tung Tung, found in Mong Kok on Sunday, is now in foster care.

Its body was deformed due to a rubber band being strapped around its belly since it was an infant.

The society believes there is a serial cat killer targeting kittens aged from three to five months in the Sham Shui Po area.

Last week another kitten was bound and thrown from a building, while on December 20 a cat was found cut in two.

Chan said the majority of animal abuse cases were in public housing estates and that five to six cats are tortured or killed every month.

She said since police investigations were practically non-existent, she feared the sadist will continue to kill and maim cats as a direct challenge to police.

"Police should at least try to collect evidence. We have had several cases in which the animals were not dead when found but police refused to deal with the cases, passing them on to the FEHD and eliminating key evidence," said Helena Chung Man-har of Hong Kong Alley Cat Watch.

"The problem is they don't see [the carcass] as evidence."

She said educating the public would not stop the perpetrators.

"We have to catch a perpetrator and bring him or her to justice to serve as a deterrent to others," she said.

Going back several years, the Bowen Road dog poisoner - who is believed to have killed a dozen dogs in 18 years - is a grim example of the difficulties of investigating animal cruelty crimes.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty against Animals offered a HK$100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the poisoner, but the reward remains unclaimed.

The SPCA spokeswoman said there would not be a reward for the cat killer at this time but that it will work with the police and keep monitoring its hotline that allows the public to phone in reports of abuse or cruelty to animals.

The maximum penalty for such offenses is three years' imprisonment and a fine of HK$200,000.