Parents of boy, 3, mauled to death by devil dogs facing jail after they ‘let him wander into pen unsupervised'

Scottish Sun

7 days ago

Police had to protect paramedics from raging dogs with riot shields
HORROR ATTACK Parents of boy, 3, mauled to death by devil dogs facing jail after they 'let him wander into pen unsupervised'
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THE parents of a three-year-old boy mauled to death by devil dogs are facing jail after they allegedly let him wander into a pen unsupervised.
Daniel Twigg was savagely attacked by two 50kg Mastiff-type dogs called Sid and Tiny at a farm in Rochdale.
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Daniel Twigg was mauled to death by two dogs
Credit: PA
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His parents have been cleared of manslaughter
The animals were "not pets" and were instead used on the farm - owned by Daniel's godfather Matthew Brown - for "breeding and to act as guard dogs".
Daniel's parents Mark Twigg and Joanne Bedford were in charge of eight or nine "untrained guard dogs" that were "difficult to control".
Despite the RSPCA telling the couple they were a danger, the pair allegedly allowed little Daniel to enter the pen "alone and unsupervised".
Twigg and Bedford have now been found not guilty of gross negligence manslaughter following a trial.
But they are still facing jail after being convicted of being in charge of a dog which caused injury while dangerously out of control.
Manchester Crown Court was told the pair had a "long association" with the farm where Twigg worked as an "odd job man".
After owner Brown was recalled to prison, Twigg, Bedford and Daniel moved in so they could tend to the animals.
The dog breeds included a Cane Corso, American Bulldog, German Shepherd, Tibetan Mastiff and a Boerboel.
They lived in an "extremely unclean and impoverished environment, with no clean bedding and surrounded by their own faeces'.
The animals were not let out for exercise and there were previous instances of attacks before Daniel was mauled to death.
On May 15, 2022, Daniel was seen on CCTV entering the pen, which was "secured with a sliding latch and a Carabiner clip," rather than a secure lock.
He was unsupervised with the dogs for at least 15 minutes before they attacked him, jurors heard.
Bedford claimed she had left her son in the kitchen with his older sister while she went upstairs to get a pair of shorts for him and use the bathroom.
She said she heard a blood-curdling scream from her daughter, who then cried out: "Mum, mum, Daniel's in the [dog] pen. He is face down and he's got blood everywhere."
The mum, who was seven months pregnant at the time, said she rushed out to the dog pen and shoved the hulking dogs out of the way.
She added: "I sat down on the floor with Daniel and asked his sister to get my phone so I could call for an ambulance.
"Daniel was face down on the floor, he had gotten puncture marks all over his neck and he was bleeding. I was petrified and scared for my little boy."
A 999 call was made by Daniel's mother almost 20 minutes after he was found inside the dog pen, it was said.
When paramedics arrived, police were forced to use riot shields to protect them from the two killer dogs.
Daniel was left with "severe damage" to his neck and also suffered "massive internal and likely plentiful external bleeding".
Twigg and Bedford denied gross negligence manslaughter and offences under the Dangerous Dogs Act.
They will be sentenced on October 10.