MOSCOW, June 16 (RAPSI) - Moscow’s Koptevsky District Court has sentenced two men to seven years in prison each for stealing a rare caracal kitten valued at 440,000 rubles ($8,000) from a woman in Moscow, the court’s spokesperson Anna Andronik told RAPSI on Tuesday.

The court also ordered the defendants to pay the victim 250,000 rubles ($4,500) in compensation.

The incident took place on June 24 in northern Moscow. According to the police, the woman invited two people into her apartment after they introduced themselves as potential buyers of the kitten. The woman claimed then the suspects produced a gun and took with them 500,000 rubles ($9,000) in cash and the kitten they intended to buy.

The defendants face up to 12 years in prison if convicted.

A caracal is a short-haired feline resembling a lynx with black tufts on the tips of its ears. The caracal is included in the international book of endangered species. The cat’s average length is 85 cm (33 inches), plus a 25-cm tail; it stands at about 45 cm (18 inches) tall at the shoulders. A caracal typically has sand-colored fur on the back and white fur on the belly.