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Hunt for German Shepherd owner after boy and two men mauled by ‘aggressive’ dog

The dog has been seized by police while enquiries are underway to find the owner

Martha McHardy
Thursday 01 June 2023 12:33 BST
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Police are hunting for the owner of a German Shepherd dog (not pictured) after a seven-year-old boy and two men were mauled
Police are hunting for the owner of a German Shepherd dog (not pictured) after a seven-year-old boy and two men were mauled (Getty/iStock)

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Police are hunting for the owner of a German Shepherd dog after a seven-year-old boy and two men were mauled in an attack.

The child and a man were found with bite injuries after police were called to reports of an “aggressive” dog in Thornton Heath, London, just before 9am on Wednesday.

Another man then approached emergency services and said he had been attacked. None of the injuries were life-threatening, police said.

The London Ambulance Service as well as police attended the scene.

Have you been affected by this story? If so email martha.mchardy@independent.co.uk

The dog has been seized by police while enquiries are underway to find the owner of the dog.

A Met Police spokesperson told The Independent: “Police were called at 08:52hrs on Wednesday, 31 May to reports of a man and a child attacked by an aggressive dog at Broughton Road, Thornton Heath.

“Officers and London Ambulance Service attended.

“At the scene a seven-year-old boy and an adult male were found with bite injuries.

“While at the scene, officers were approached by another man who had also been attacked by the dog.

“None of their injuries were life threatening. The dog, which appeared to be a German shepherd breed, was seized by officers and will be assessed.

“Enquiries are underway to identify and locate the owner of the dog.”

A London Ambulance Service spokesman said: “We were called yesterday (May 31) at 8.57am to reports of a dog attack on Broughton Road, Croydon.

“We sent a medic in a fast-response car, who treated a child at the scene.”

There have been 15 fatal dog attacks in the UK in the past 18 months, while there were nearly 22,000 cases of injuries from out-of-control dogs in 2022.

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