Elderly woman dies in West Midlands after being attacked by two escaped dogs in garden

A woman in her 80s has died after being attacked in her garden by two escaped dogs, West Midlands Police have said.

West Midlands Police were alerted after the woman - who has not been named - was found in the garden of an address on Boundary Avenue in Rowley Regis at around 3.20pm on Friday (2 April).

The woman suffered serious bite injuries during the incident, but despite the efforts of emergency services, she was pronounced dead at the scene.

The dogs managed to get into the woman’s garden before attacking her, but they did not belong to her, police said.

Both dogs have been seized in order to establish their breed.

A 43-year-old local man has been detained on suspicion of being the person in charge of a dog dangerously out of control. He remains in custody for questioning.

A post-mortem will take place in due course to establish the cause of death and police have said they will remain at the scene as work is carried out to establish the full circumstances.

West Midlands Police said in a statement: “Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the woman at this deeply distressing time.”