Police have issued an urgent appeal to trace the man believed to have owned a Belgian mastiff that mauled a woman to death.
The victim, named locally as Barbara Williams, was attacked last night at a house on Demesne Road, Wallington, south London.
The dog, described by one officer as large and ferocious, was shot dead by police.
Det chief superintendent Guy Ferguson: “We are in the process of contacting the lady’s next-of-kin. We also urgently want to speak to Alex Blackburn-Smith, who is the main occupier of the premises, in relation to the circumstances of the incident to establish facts.”
Mr Ferguson described the dog as “distinctly large” and said at the time of the attack another woman of similar age to Ms Williams was in the house with a child under five. “It was a very ferocious dog,” he said.
“The officers had to use shields to contain the dog.” He said police would be investigating previous complaints about the dog and what, if anything, was done.
Mr Ferguson said it was understood that the dead woman had been a lodged in the house where the attack took place.
Next door neighbour Burhan Yanbolu said he had previously called the police and council to complain about the animal after it smashed their adjoining fence.
PA