A woman has been arrested on suspicious of manslaughter after a man and several dogs were found dead at a house in West Derby, Liverpool, on Friday evening
A woman has been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter after a man and several dogs were found dead at a house in West Derby.
Merseyside Police said officers were called at around 6.10pm on Friday to reports that a man in his 70s had died inside an address on Coachmans Drive. The death is currently being treated as unexplained, and enquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances.
A 55-year-old woman from West Derby has been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter, ill-treatment or wilful neglect of a person by a care worker and causing unnecessary suffering to an animal. She has been conditionally bailed pending further inquiries.
When emergency services attended the address, a number of dogs were found inside the home, and some of them had sadly died. One police car remained outside the house on Sunday afternoon, with a tent from Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service tent positioned on the drive, the Liverpool Echo reports.
A post-mortem examination has been carried out and toxicology tests are ongoing, the force said. Enquiries are continuing to locate the man’s next of kin, and police have urged anyone who believes they may know him to come forward.
Temporary Detective Chief Superintendent Helen Bennett said: “Our thoughts at this time are with the family of the man who has sadly passed way. As this matter is clearly in the very early stages, we would ask people to avoid speculating and allow us to carry out our enquiries.
“Although we have arrested a person in connection with the investigation, we are still appealing for anyone with information to come forward.”
An RSPCA spokesperson said: “We have been liaising with Merseyside Police about this, however as this is ongoing, we are limited in what information we can share at this time.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Merseyside Police via social media, its website or by calling 101, quoting incident reference 26000448704. Information can also be passed anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555 111 or visiting the Crimestoppers website.