XL Bully attack – latest: Woman killed by two dogs in Hornchurch pictured as neighbours feared for children
The woman killed by two XL Bully dogs at a semi-detached home in Cornwall Close in Hornchurch has been named locally as Angeline Mahal
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A woman killed by her XL Bully dogs at her house in east London has been named locally as Angeline Mahal.
Ms Mahal, believed to be in her 50s, was attacked by her two dogs at the semi-detached home in Cornwall Close in Hornchurch just after 1pm on Monday.
Armed police attended the scene and told neighbours in the cul-de-sac to stay indoors before the area was evacuated shortly after 4pm.
Despite London Ambulance Service sending paramedics and a helicopter, the woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
On Tuesday afternoon, Ms Mahal was named locally, as His Majesty’s Coroners East London confirmed they had been made aware of her death.
Both dogs were registered as exempt from the government’s ban on XL Bully dogs, which came in on 1 February.
Under the agreement for having a dog exempt, owners must have had the animal neutered, have it microchipped and keep it muzzled and on a lead in public.
But one neighbour, Sejal Solanki, said she had warned her child about going near the dogs.
She said: “I said ‘Don’t ever touch those dogs. They’re dangerous’.”
Have you been affected by this? Email alexander.ross@independent.co.uk
Other XL Bully dog attack cases in the news this week
On Thursday, a man will be sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court after his XL Bully dog attacked an 11-year-old girl and two men.
Farhat Ajaz, 61, pleaded guilty to three charges of owning a dog which caused injury while dangerously out of control following an incident in Bordesley Green, Birmingham on 9 September last year.
The attack by the dog, named Tyson, resulted in shoulder and arm injuries for the girl.
And earlier this month, a 39-year-old arrested on connection with the death of grandmother Esther Martin, who was killed by XL Bully dogs in Clacton-on-Sea in Essex, had his bail extended as investigations continue.
Essex Police will not say if the dogs were registered.
Paramedics administered CPR to the victim
Neighbours have described seeing paramedics administer CPR to the victim in her front garden.
A woman who has asked to remain anonymous said: “I came out of the house and looked to see what had happened. We hadn’t heard anything but saw a helicopter overhead and loads of police.
“I stood by the road and saw a paramedic administering CPR. That poor woman. It’s shocking.”
One person heard barking during the incident
One woman said she heard barking during the incident and had previously warned her child about going near the XL bully dogs.
She told the PA news agency: “I said ‘don’t ever touch those dogs. They’re dangerous’.
“I didn’t see anything but I heard a lot of of barking and saw a lot of people outside.”
Road was evacuated
Neighbours say they were told to stay indoors “out of respect” before being evacuated by the police.
One man, who has asked to remain anonymous, said: “I was sat in the garden when it happened. I didn’t hear anything but I saw a helicopter overhead.
“I looked out and saw two or three ambulances and eight or nine police cars. We asked police what had happened, they said there’d been ‘an unfortunate incident’.
“At around 4.15pm we were told to evacuate. We were out for around half an hour while police blocked off the road.”
‘Really sad’ - local dog trainer
The BBC has spoken to a dog trainer who lives local to the house where the woman died.
Michaela Scott, who specialises in working with XL Bully dogs, said: “It’s really sad for the person, the neighbours, for the local community.”
She claimed they’d been a rise in people wanting help in training their dogs since new rules came into play after the ban in February.
She added: “Owners want to do what’s right for their dog....they want to know how to keep their dog safe as well as everyone else safe.”
Other recent attacks
The attack in Hornchurch comes after mother and son Amanda Young, 49, and Lewis Young, 30, were jailed last week after an eight-year-old boy was injured in a “savage and sustained attack” by their XL bully.
The boy suffered extensive injuries to his scalp, face and hands in the attack in the communal area of a block of flats in Wadham Road, Bootle, Merseyside, on February 10.
In March, Farhat Ajaz, 61, admitted being the owner of a dangerously out of control XL bully that injured an 11-year-old girl and two men in Birmingham.
And in the same month four men were hurt by a dog suspected to be the banned breed in Battersea, south west London, after which the animal was shot by police.
On February 3, just after the ban came into force, grandmother Esther Martin, 68, suffered unsurvivable wounds in a dog attack at a house in Jaywick in Essex, while visiting her grandson.
She had reportedly tried to break up a fight between two puppies before she was attacked.
Attack could be the first fatal attack by registered XL Bully under new laws
The two XL Bully dogs that killed the woman in her home in Hornchurch were registered, police have said.
They are among more than 55,000 registered with an exemption certificate to ban introduced on the breed on 1 February.
Shortly after the ban, grandmother Esther Martin was killed by two XL Bully dogs in Clacton-on-Sea in Essex - but the force will not say if they were registered.
Under rules attached to exemption certificates, anyone who owns one of the dogs must have had the animal neutered, have it microchipped and keep it muzzled and on a lead in public, among other restrictions.
Tragic sign spotted outside home where woman was killed
A sticker on the front door of a home where a woman was killed in an attack by her two XL Bully dogs warned “never mind the dogs”.
Underneath the opening text, the message jokingly added: “Beware of the kids”.
Tragic sign outside home where woman was mauled to death by her own XL bullies
Neighbours have spoken of their shock after the woman was fatally attacked by her two XL Bully dogs at her home in Cornwall Close in Hornchuch
Woman named as Angeline Mahal
The woman killed in the dog attack has been named locally as Angeline Mahal.
His Majesty’s Coroners East London have been referred notice of the woman’s death and a hearing to open her inquest will take place in the future.
Relatives of woman killed ‘begged her to get rid of them'
As more details emerge about the victim, named locally as Angeline Mahal, we’re seeing a relative of the mother quoted in The Sun.
Describing her as “loved by everyone”, the relative, who did not want to be named, said he had asked her to get rid of the animals before the tragedy.
They added: “The bond with owners and their dogs is too strong.”
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