Manslaughter charge for killer pit bull owner
British woman was mauled after taking in the animal
AFTER an intensive investigation lasting more than two months, the Guardia Civil have identified the owner of the pit bull that killed a 67year-old British woman, and accused him of gross negligence.
Anne Shields, a kindhearted animal lover, was attacked on February 24 this year.
Guardia Civil officers received a call about a dog attacking a woman in a rural area of the municipality of Macastre, which lies to the west of Valencia city.
When they arrived, they found that the health services and other witnesses were already on the scene, but the dog would not let them near the victim, so they had to shoot it.
Anne was taken by ambulance to La Fe hospital in Valencia, where she sadly died the next day from head and arm injuries.
Officers from the judicial police team of the Guardia Civil were called in the afternoon of the attack to take charge of the investigation and find out who was responsible.
The dog was identified as a pit bull terrier, a breed classified as potentially dangerous and subject to strict ownership measures under current animal legislation in Spain.
Stray dog rescued
It had no microchip and its origin and ownership were unknown.
After initial investigations and taking statements from witnesses in the area, officers discovered that Anne had found the dog four days before the attack in a very acute state of malnutrition, with clear signs of abandonment and suffering from mange.
She had him treated by her vet and tried to take him to various animal shelters, but they were all full, so she named him Choccy and decided to keep him until she could find his owners or another solution for him.
After the attack an appeal was made on Facebook by Anne's friends for anyone who knew anything about the pit bull or had seen him to contact the Guardia Civil.
The judicial police team took 15 different statements from people and were able to obtain various photographs of the dog at different stages of its life.
They learned that it was about two years old and had already been observed and photographed by several people who told the investigators how they had seen the animal abandoned and without the care and vigilance that potentially dangerous dogs should have by law.
The alleged owner and some of his family members recognised the animal from the photographs when interviewed.
Ban for keeping dangerous dogs
The suspect had a criminal record and was therefore banned from owning potentially dangerous dogs under current legislation.
Officers were also able to establish that he had allegedly kept similar dogs previously without proper control and care.
Officers carried out a visual inspection of the suspect's home, observing the places where the dog could have escaped, as the suspect admitted in his statement that the dog had escaped from his property.
As a result of the investigation, a 35-year-old man of Spanish nationality was taken into custody on March 24 and charged with manslaughter through gross negligence and an offence against the protection of flora, fauna and domestic animals for abandoning the dog. The case has been referred to a judge at Requena courthouse.