WEST MEMPHIS, Ark. — Attacks believed to be by the same pack of dogs more than a week apart left a man dead, a woman injured, and the West Memphis community asking why the animals were still roaming the streets.
The horrible image of a woman being attacked by dogs outside of an abandoned home nearly two weeks ago off 19th Street is still on one woman’s mind Wednesday. She asked us not to identify her.
“Just screaming, screaming,” she recalled. “I mean just eating her. Like she was like food.”
Her family called 911.
“We screamed and yelled for them to go away,” she said.
She then learned that a man had been attacked by a pack of dogs nearby several days before. West Memphis Police say he died a few days ago from injuries he received earlier in the month.
“That tripped me out. I think they should’ve done something the first time,” she said.
The dogs in question weren’t picked up until Tuesday after a request from the police department, after they learned about the death.
We talked to Kerry Facello, Animal Service Director for West Memphis, on the phone about the incident and asked how could this happen.
“We have not been able to get any definite description of the dogs that did either of the attacks,” Facello said. “That’s a very reasonable question and our goal, our mission, our purpose as animal services is to protect the community, that’s our ultimate goal and purpose. Again, we are somewhat handicapped because we’re not certain in either instance which dogs did the attacking.”
Facello said it was impossible to say if the dogs responsible for the attack could still be out there. She said the assumption has been made it’s dogs from a property off 19th Street that appears to be a scrap yard.
Facello said the owner has been cooperative with the investigation and claims the dogs only protect his property. Four adult dogs and 10 puppies were seized from the property.
“It’s been very difficult to discern what dogs actually did the damage,” she said.
The attacks are under investigation and it’s unclear if the dogs’ owner could face charges.