Liverpool dog attack: man arrested after gran, 65, mauled to death by five ‘out-of-control’ bulldogs

Tributes are being paid to a “lovely” gran who was mauled to death by a pack of “out of control” dogs.

Ann Dunn, 65, died at her home in the Vauxhall area of Liverpool after neighbours reported hearing a woman’s screams on Monday, the Mirror reports.

Merseyside Police confirmed a 31-year-old man has been arrested and five American bulldogs have been destroyed following the incident.

A spokesman for the force said the man had been arrested on suspicion of owning a dog dangerously out of control and was in custody.

The spokesman added: “Five American bulldogs, which were inside the property, were handed over and have since been humanely destroyed.”

What happened?

Ann Dunn, 65, was mauled by dogs in a property at St Brigids Crescent in Kirkdale on Monday, Merseyside Police said.

North West Ambulance Service paramedics reported the attack at around 4.25pm and she was pronounced dead at the scene. A post-mortem will be carried out to establish the cause of death, Merseyside Police added.

Detective Inspector Katie Coote said: “This is clearly a very distressing incident and our thoughts are with the family and friends of the lady who died.

“Our enquiries remain ongoing as we seek to establish what has happened and I would urge anyone who could assist our enquiries to get in touch.”

One neighbour, who asked not to be named, lead tributes to the “lovely” gran who worked as a cleaner. They told the Mirror: “She was lovely, really funny, such a happy girl. She had not long ago been on holiday with her daughter.

“I used to see her walking to work, no matter the weather, come rain or shine she’d always walk down and never missed a day.”

Another added: “She always used to stop and chat and she was always smiling. She was a lovely woman.

“The first thing I saw was a load of people gathered at the end of the crescent talking to each other on the phone. Then all the police turned up with the fire engines.

“When I found out it was Ann who had been attacked by a dog I was in shock. I couldn’t believe it.

“I’ve lived here for 38 years and there’s been a huge increase in the number of fatal dog attacks that you hear about or read about in the paper.

“I’ve seen lots of vicious and nasty looking dogs, I don’t know why anyone would want a dog like that, but they seem to be more and more popular.”

Police have launched an investigation and Detective Inspector Gavin Mulcahy has appealed for anyone with any information to come forward.

He said: “We understand the shock this incident will cause in the local community and beyond.

“Our officers are at the scene carrying out further enquiries, so if you have any information please let us know.”

Anyone with information can contact @MerPolCC or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 with reference 690.