Mother arrested as 11-month-old girl is mauled to death by pit bull

Ava Jayne Marie Corless was in bed at a house in Emily Street, Blackburn, at around 11pm yesterday when she was savaged by what police described as an American pitbull-type dog.

Police and ambulance staff attempted to resuscitate the girl but she was pronounced dead in hospital a short time later.

The girl’s mother has been named locally as Chloe King and the man in custody, her current partner, was named as Lee Wright, who is not the father of the child.

Police have not confirmed the names of those under arrest.

They were downstairs when the attack took place, police said.

Locals claim to have made previous complaints about the dog’s behaviour to police.

Chief Superintendent Chris Bithell of Lancashire Police said: “This is an absolutely horrific incident in which a baby girl has lost her life and I would like to take this opportunity to express my own personal sympathy to the wider family of baby Ava.”

Mr Bithell said police were first alerted by the ambulance service who were called to reports of the girl being mauled by a pet dog.

A post mortem will take place to find out the exact cause of death.

Mr Bithell added: “The dog is believed to be an American Pit Bull type, it has been destroyed and tests will be carried out today to establish the exact breed of the dog and inquiries into the history of the animal.

“I’m told its quite a large pit bull type dog.”

Both suspects were initially arrested on suspicion of child neglect, before being re-arrested this morning on the more serious charge of manslaughter and will be questioned by detectives today, Mr Bithell said.

“The lady in custody is the baby’s mother and the male in custody is the mother’s current boyfriend,” he added.

“The baby was upstairs in a bed in one of the front bedrooms and the two people who are currently in custody, they were downstairs when the attack took place.”

Asked about claims from neighbours reporting dangerous dogs at the address he added: “As part of the investigation we are making inquiries to see whether there have been previous issues with this particular dog and I think at this moment it would be too early to speculate on that.”

Today’s tragedy comes after a spate of similar attacks involving out-of-control dogs in recent years.

• In November last year, four-year-old Lexi Branson was mauled to death by a pet dog despite her mother’s desperate attempts to halt the attack. Lexi, described by family friends as a “happy and sweet” girl, died at Nottingham’s Queen’s Medical Centre after being attacked at a flat in Mountsorrel, Leicestershire. It later emerged that the dog had been a stray until a couple of months earlier.

• In June 2013, a five-year-old boy was taken to hospital after being mauled by a dog in Co Antrim, Ireland. The attack happened at Carniny Primary School on the outskirts of Ballymena. The boy was taken to hospital in Belfast where his condition was described as serious. It was later confirmed that the dog was being shown to schoolchildren as a last-day-of-term treat.

• Last May, Clifford Clarke, 79, was killed in a dog attack in his garden in Liverpool. The retired hospital porter suffered fatal injuries after being mauled by a bull mastiff cross which was reported to have found a way into Mr Clarke’s garden from a neighbouring house. The dogs was shot dead by armed officers and two women from the area, aged 27 and 28, were arrested and bailed on suspicion of manslaughter.

• Two months earlier, Jade Anderson, 14, was mauled to death by four dogs while visiting her friend near Wigan. The girl was discovered by armed police at a friend’s house in Chaucer Grove, Atherton, amid a pack of aggressive dogs. The animals, who were not on the list of breeds banned by the Dangerous Dogs Act, were put down after the incident. The owner of the animals, mother-of-one Beverley Concannon, 45, was given a suspended 16-week sentence for animal cruelty at Wigan Magistrates’ Court last month.

• In November 2012, 71-year-old Gloria Knowles died after being attacked by a pack of dogs that she had gone to feed. The great-grandmother was found dead with multiple injuries at a house with five dogs in Morden, south London. Police said the animals - two Bordeaux bulldogs, two American bulldogs and a mongrel - were not banned breeds. Mrs Knowles is believed to have been feeding the pet dogs belonging to her daughter when she was mauled.

• In March 2011, Jude Keir, nine, suffered severe head injuries when he was mauled by a dog outside his school in Scotland. The young boy needed 40 stitches and is said to have only survived because two people dragged the dog off him. The attack by a Staffordshire bull terrier occurred at Woodhead Primary School in Hamilton.

• In November 2009, four-year-old John-Paul Massey died after suffering multiple injuries when he was savaged by the family pet at his grandmother’s home in November 2009. The animal, named Uno, was an illegal pitbull-type dog belonging to his uncle, Christian Foulkes, who was jailed four four months after he admitted to owning the animal. John-Paul’s grandmother, Helen Foulkes, admitted keeping a dangerous dog and was given a four-month jail term, suspended for 18 months.