Man jailed after his dog mauled his younger brother to death

A dad-of-three has been sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison after his dog fatally mauled his younger brother. The tragic incident happened place in the home shared by the dog's owner, Gary Stevens, and the victim, 51-year-old Wayne Stevens.

Ace, a Cane Corso cross, inflicted horrific injuries across Wayne's body, leading to his death. Derby Crown Court heard how Gary, 55, who was "heavily intoxicated" at the time, had threatened to set the dog on police officers as they arrived to help.

He struggled to control the animal for nearly an hour after calling 999. Despite knowing that Ace had previously bitten people, he had "misinterpreted the warning signs" of the dog's behaviour, reports Derbyshire Live.

Judge Shaun Smith KC said: "It was evident you had no control over the dog whatsoever. Your brother suffered multiple lacerations to the face, hands and legs.

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"It seems likely your brother was brought to the ground and had his head and face mauled. He was partially-scalped from front to back, it was described as 'a frenzied mauling'.

"You told the police the dog normally goes for the head and face 'because that's what these dogs do, they are biting dogs'. You said the dog had bitten a couple of people before but you did not report those incidents to the police. I am entirely satisfied you knew of the dangers this dog presented."

Laura Pitman, prosecuting, provided chilling details of the attack, that happened in the early hours of April 22, 2023. She revealed in court: "At just before 6am the defendant called 999 to report that a dog had attacked a person at 135 Cameron Road. He was anxious and distressed then abusive. He was asked by the call operator what type of dog it was and he replied it was a poodle. That was a lie."

She depicted a chaotic scene as paramedics and police responded to the incident, with Stevens answering the door 'heavily intoxicated' and failing to control the dog as instructed by the authorities.

Despite warnings, one paramedic heroically entered the property only to find a harrowing sight. Miss Pitman detailed: "It was not the poodle they expected, the defendant was holding a piece of raw bacon saying that was the only way to keep it happy.

"The paramedic found the deceased lying on the floor wedged up against a wall next to an open door that led upstairs, there was blood everywhere on the floor, the walls, the surrounding furniture and on the deceased's body. An initial examination showed Mr Stevens had many visible puncture marks and incredibly severe facial injuries. No pulse was found."

Miss Pitman stated that Stevens was abusive and "mocking" towards the emergency services, who showed fear of the dog as he struggled to get it under control. She said: "He was threatening to turn the dog on them and a number of officers armed with Tasers pointed it at the dog and then fired them which incapacitated it as they tried to drag it towards the police van. But one Taser barb came free and armed officers arrived and had no other option but to shoot the dog."

The prosecutor added that during his interview, Stevens claimed that he and his brother had been drinking in a pub in Allenton before continuing to drink at Cameron Road.

She said: "He said he could not remember exactly what happened but he remembered the dog attacking his brother.

"He said the most likely trigger was that his brother was usually quite animated when he was speaking when he had been drinking using his arms and that might have been the trigger but he could not remember because he had been drinking. He said the dog had been given to him six-to-eight months earlier by a relative and had bitten Wayne before.

"He said the dog would normally go for the face and neck area because, in his words 'that's what these dogs do, it was a biting dog'. He said the dog would defecate in the house."

Miss Pitman described the dog involvedas an "incredibly heavy" Cane Corso cross breed, tipping the scales at 50.6kg. Stevens, who previously resided on Cameron Road and now lives on Vicarage Road, Mickleover, admitted to a charge under the Dangerous Dogs Act for having a dog dangerously out of control that caused injury resulting in death.

Tony Stanford, representing Stevens, explained his client had taken the dog from his niece who couldn't care for it due to having five children. He stated: "She says 'If I knew Ace would have behaved this way I would never have given him to Gary. He had never behaved like this'.

"This was an awful tragedy but the dog was not used as a weapon, it was not a prohibited dog and he did not have that dog to intimidate people. He did not address the warning signs (previous biting episodes) because he misinterpreted them.

"He and his brother lived in the house together and he trusted Wayne enough to look after the dog. This is not a dog that got out and attacked someone in the street. Something happened that caused the dog to attack and we don't know what that is. His childhood was horrific, he was a battered child, on one occasion he had hot, boiling, water poured over him."

In addition to being sentenced to jail, Stevens has been prohibited from owning a dog for life by the judge.