A man and a woman were arrested on suspicion of being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control after the vicious attack left a 19-year-old woman dead in Bristol
A woman was left covered in blood after an XL Bully killed a teenager in a vicious seconds-long attack in Bristol.
Paramedics and police arrived at the first floor flat to find a blood-soaked scene after the mutt pounced on the 19-year-old woman, taking just moments to kill her. After the terrifying onslaught, the owner was seen soaked in blood outside the flat. Cops then stunned the dog and transported it to a vet for destruction.
Neighbours recalled seeing the young woman, who was clad in a dressing gown, screaming out: “They killed my dog, they killed my dog.” The woman had moved into the flat just three weeks prior, and told her new neighbours that she had the required documentation to legally keep her XL Bully dog. However, locals reported that the creature was not muzzled as is required by law.
Following a spate of similar attacks, XL Bullies were added to the banned breeds list in January 2024, making it illegal to own one without a Certificate of Exemption.
A neighbour told the MailOnline that they rarely saw the dog being walked and that the woman claimed she had papers, but didn’t show her neighbours. She recalled the owner coming “out of her flat, she was trying to scream, cry and ask for help all at the same time. I went to her and asked if she was alright but she couldn’t get the words out. She had blood on her, I don’t know if that was from trying to stop the dog from doing the attack. It was not a small amount of blood.”
Hotel worker Nicola Harrison, 58, who lives in the street, said: “The woman was covered in blood, it was all down her legs. She was going on about her dog.”
She claims she didn’t realise that someone had died, adding that she heard someone screaming constantly. “It’s a scream I will not forget – she was sat on my steps screaming. One of the neighbours took her in. I can still hear her screams,” she added.
A resident in Taylor Gardens told The Mirror: “I just saw a flash of blue lights and police and all of a sudden we heard this screaming and shouting. I came out and in a garden of the flat over the road she was sitting on the step and I noticed then she was covered head to toe in blood and she was absolutely completely hysterical. She sat there shouting: ‘Please, please help her.’
“I do feel really sorry for the owner of the dog. I’ve not seen the dog itself but my neighbour said it didn’t like men. I feel for the parents of the girl who lost their life because that is the worst thing for any parent to get a phone call saying: ‘Your daughter’s died.’” He added: “You hear about things, on the television they were talking about deaths over the years from this breed of dog. It’s not the dog; it’s how they’re brought up. I’m not saying she didn’t raise it properly, she only moved in two or three weeks ago, I don’t know the people.
“I do feel sorry for the dog. It’s been put down. But mainly I feel sorry for the parents of the young girl. It is shocking because you don’t expect to see anything like that on your doorstep. I know it’s all over the country, not just in Bristol.”
Officers from Avon and Somerset Police were called to an incident inside a flat in Cobhorn Drive in the Hartcliffe area of the city at 7.19pm on Wednesday. A spokesperson said officers attended alongside the ambulance service but the young woman, who was attacked by a dog believed to have been an XL bully, died at the scene.
The woman’s family have been informed and are being supported by a specially trained officer. A man and a woman, both aged in their 20s, were arrested on suspicion of being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control causing injury resulting in death and possession of a prohibited breed of dog. They remain in police custody.
The dog involved in the attack has been put down, neighbourhood inspector Terry Murphy of Avon and Somerset Police confirmed at a press conference on Thursday. He declined to comment on whether the woman who died lived at the address where the incident happened or if there had been previous police contact with the household. Initial reports suggested it may be an XL Bully, but confirming the breed will form part of an assessment process by veterinary experts.
