Tragedy strikes Crawley family as uncle is held on suspicion of manslaughter
DETECTIVES are continuing their enquiries into the ‘horrific’ death of an 18-month-old girl who was mauled to death by an American Bulldog.
The toddler, named by the Telegraph newspaper as Zumer Ahmed, died after she was savagely attacked by her uncles American Bulldog on Saturday 17 April.
The youngster was with her mother, grandmother and three-year-old sister when the attack happened in the kitchen of the family’s home in Crawley, West Sussex.
Police said two workmen, who were in a nearby property, rushed to the house after hearing screams.
They managed to distract the dog and pull the toddler to safety before an ambulance was called.
The dog, an American Bulldog, is not believed to be a breed that is banned under the Dangerous Dogs Act.
Its owner, who is the uncle of the toddler, was not at the home at the time of the attack but was arrested by officers and is being questioned on suspicion of manslaughter.
DCI Trevor Bowles, who is leading the enquiry, said the dog was being “securely held” and would be destroyed.
“It appears that the little girl was in the kitchen with her grandmother, mother and three year old sister when the dog entered the house from the garden,” he said.
“What happened next was truly horrific, as the dog picked up the child and attacked it in front of her family. Two workmen at a property nearby heard screaming and ran to the house to help. They were able to distract the animal, who dropped the baby from its jaws. One of them then pulled the child to safety before an ambulance was called.
”Officers have been working through the night to build up a picture of what lead to this appalling tragedy. Our enquiries our actively continuing and a suspect remains in custody.”
