Tag Archives: destruction order

dog attack, dog used as a weapon, Dogs

Castleford, West Yorkshire: Del Midgley

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CONVICTED (2024) | Del Alan Midgley, born c. 1969, of Robin Hood Street, Castleford WF10 4AX – used his dog as a weapon, leading to the dog being destroyed.

Violent headcase Del Midgley from Castleford, West Yorkshire - used his dog as a weapon leading to the animal being put down.

Del Midgley, who has 48 previous convictions for 164 offences, including robbery, ABH and affray, lured a man to his home to attack him with a baseball bat, then goaded his dog into attacking him.

Midgley then allowed the Staffy to attack a police officer when they turned up to arrest him. He also racially abused officers and tried to bite them himself.

He admitted a raft of offences including GBH and allowing a dangerous dog to be out of control. The unnamed dog was ordered to be put down.

The incident took place on June 30, 2023, after Midgley swung a baseball bat at the man, who then tried to grab the weapon.

Violent headcase Del Midgley from Castleford, West Yorkshire - used his dog as a weapon leading to the animal being put down.

The man was able to get out of the home and into the street, followed by Midgley who continued to hit him. His dog was with him, and when Midgley relented, the dog pounced and mauled the man for around 40 seconds. The man suffered a broken rib and a punctured lung from the bat attack, and lacerations to his skull and ears from the dog.

After the police were called, they found Midgley in an irate state and he tried to shut the door on the officers, but they were able to force their way inside. The court was told that Midgley allowed the dog to intimidate the officers who had to withdraw, but not before he jumped at one officer and sank his teeth into her arm with such ferocity it left the muscle exposed.

Violent headcase Del Midgley from Castleford, West Yorkshire - used his dog as a weapon leading to the animal being put down.

Midgley was Tasered and brought under control, but after claiming he had a heart condition, the officers took him to hospital. However, he continued to struggle and be abusive. He racially abused two officers who had to restrain him when he tried to bite them. Finally, he urinated in the police van.

Held on remand since his arrest, he admitted section 20 GBH, two counts of being a a person with a dangerous dog that caused serious injury and two of racially-aggravated harassment.

An order was made to have the dog put down and Midgley was given a 17-year ban from keeping animals.

Mitigating, Chloe Hudson said that Midgley did not object to the dog being euthanised.

Violent headcase Del Midgley from Castleford, West Yorkshire - used his dog as a weapon leading to the animal being put down.

She said that on the day of the attack, Midgley had been drinking heavily and in relation to the dog, she added: “It was clearly very loyal and he [Midgley] should have intervened. He is beginning to realise that offending of this type will just end up in further custodial sentences.

She said of the relationship with the victim: “There’s a long history of knowing one another and there’s not always been a mutual liking, but it does not excuse what went on, it should not have happened.” Miss Hudson said Midgley was having drug counselling in prison and was enrolling in courses to better himself.

The judge, Recorder Marco Giuliani, jailed him for 45 months, and activated an additional two months of a suspended sentences he was on at the time for a driving matter.

Sentencing | 47-month custodial for non-animal welfare offences. Destruction order for the dog which Midgley didn’t object to. Banned from keeping animals for 17 years.

Yorkshire Evening Post

dog attack, Dogs

Llanelli, Carmarthenshire: Kevin Griffiths

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CONVICTED (2023) | Kevin Griffiths, born 15 November 1979, of of Frondeg Terrace, Llanelli SA14 1PZ – allowed an XL bully he kept cooped up in the bathroom to attack his partner.

CPS prosecution of Kevin Griffith from Llanelli, Wales, who allowed an XL bully kept cooped up in a tiny bathroom to attack his partner.

Griffiths ignored advice from police to have the XL bully called Reggie put down after the dog previously bit his partner. Instead he kept him shut in the bathroom of his flat until the dog attacked the woman again to her severe injury.

Caitlyn Brazel, prosecuting, said in May 2023 Griffiths was about to take Reggie for a walk. His partner, who was afraid of the dog after the previous attack, went to the bedroom.

CPS prosecution of Kevin Griffith from Llanelli, Wales, who allowed an XL bully kept cooped up in a tiny bathroom to attack his partner.
A destruction order was issued for XL bully Reggie

The court was told Griffiths got the dog and then asked to be let into the bedroom – banging on the door repeatedly. This “wound up” the dog who was said to be going “berserk”.

Griffiths opened the door and Reggie attacked the woman immediately, biting her face and arms. He managed to get the dog back into the bathroom and police were called. On arrival, officers found the woman crying in the car park outside the property.

The court heard the casualty was taken to hospital by her father and subsequently had to undergo plastic surgery to repair the damage to her face.

CPS prosecution of Kevin Griffith from Llanelli, Wales, who allowed an XL bully kept cooped up in a tiny bathroom to attack his partner.

In court, Griffiths pleaded guilty to being the owner of a dog dangerously out of control which caused injury.

Sending Griffiths to prison for 20 months, the judge told him that dog owners have a duty to ensure their animals are under proper control and are safe.

He said the defendant had “been in charge of what was, effectively, a dangerous weapon” when he allowed it to attack the woman.

The judge ordered that Reggie be destroyed.

ITV News
Wales Online

Animal Abandonment, dog attack, Dogs

St Budeaux, Plymouth, Devon: Marie Emmett and Chris Lancaster

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CONVICTED (2023) | Marie Emmett aka Marie Harrison, born 14 March 1987, and Chris Lancaster, born 7 September 1992, of Kit Hill Crescent, Barne Barton, St Budeaux, Plymouth PL5 1EW – starved and neglected a young American bulldog and allowed him to kill a puppy.

Animal abusers Marie Emmett and Chris Lancaster from St Budeaux, Plymouth.
The cruel negligence of Marie Emmett and Chris Lancaster led to the deaths of two young dogs.

On December 21, 2022, police arrived at the the home of Marie Emmett and Chris Lancaster to find their two-year-old American bulldog, Bane, tied up outside the house. Officers were called after Bane had reportedly killed another dog – a four month old puppy named Lilo – within their home.

https://www.facebook.com/chris.lancaster.754
Chris Lancaster posted this photo to Facebook in July 2021. It’s known if the dog pictured is Bane.

Bane was in an extremely underweight and dirty state, with overgrown claws, indicating that he had not been walked properly.

In a witness statement, one police officer said: “It looked like he had been kept in the kitchen. It smelt strongly of urine and small scratch marks from his claws could be seen all over the floors and walls. It appears the dog was possibly confined in this location. The rear yard was unkempt and covered in dog faeces.”

Bane was taken to a vet who found he was suffering severe dehydration, was smelly, with sticky fur and covered in urine. His feet and paw pads were covered with scalded areas and sores with areas of non-healing necrotic tissue.

Convicted animal abuser Marie Emmett from St Budeaux, Plymouth,
Convicted animal abuser Marie Emmett, a mother of four who also goes by the name Marie Harrison

The vet said Bane was emaciated with visible bones, no body fat and a loss of muscle mass. He weighed less than half the weight he should have been – at around 20 kg when he should have been 40-60 kg.

At the request of police, Bane was put to sleep and a post mortem found that he had rubber flooring in his stomach.

The vet report stated: “This dog had no access to food and was clearly eating what it could to survive using its basic survival instinct. This, and the lack of fat deposits throughout the entire body system, suggests this dog had been starved for a long time and supports my professional opinion that this dog was suffering and had been for a while.

Sentencing | both received a 12-week suspended prison sentence;40 hours of unpaid work; 15 rehabilitation activity requirement days; costs of £200 each. Ten-year disqualification order, which can be appealed after five years.

PlymouthLive

Dogs, Pet Profiteering, puppy farmers / traffickers, kennels, backyard breeders

St Budeaux, Plymouth: Zoe Small

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CONVICTED (2023) | backyard breeder Zoe Louise Small, born 21 April 1992, of Tamerton Avenue, St Budeaux, Plymouth PL5 1TW – starved a pregnant dog and kept her in horrendous conditions.

Backyard breeder Zoe Louise Small from St Budeaux, Plymouth, Devon

Small, a make-up artist trading under the name Make-up by Zoe Small, admitted two animal welfare offences in relation to springer spaniel Bella, following an investigation and prosecution by the RSPCA.

Plymouth backyard breeder Zoe Small's dog was starved and kept in horrendous conditions

Shockingly, South and West Devon Magistrates’ Court ordered the destruction of Bella and her puppies supposedly on the grounds that they had endured enough suffering, but this was later overturned following an appeal from the RSPCA solicitor. All dogs will now be rehomed.

Backyard breeder Zoe Louise Small from St Budeaux, Plymouth, Devon

Small, who runs a dog breeding business with husband Daniel Small, specialising in French bulldogs, admitted failing to adequately explore and address the causes of Bella’s weight loss. She also failed to ensure that Bella’s needs were met in that the dog was not provided with a suitable environment that was dry.

Prolific backyard breeders Zoe Small and Daniel Small from Plymouth, Devon
Zoe and Daniel Small

Following Small’s conviction, the RSPCA released distressing pictures showing the living conditions the heavily pregnant dog was kept in.

RSPCA Inspector Jim Farr, who investigated for the animal welfare charity, was contacted by vets after Bella was admitted to the surgery in the evening, before an emergency caesarean.

The vet, who was concerned that Bella was very thin and lethargic, said she was suffering from prolonged malnutrition and that her needs as a pregnant dog were not being met.

Plymouth backyard breeder Zoe Small's dog was starved and kept in horrendous conditions

As a result the RSPCA launched an investigation and Inspector Farr, who visited the run-down stables where Bella was being kept at Blackdown Meadows, near Kingsbridge, with police and a vet, described what he found.

Plymouth backyard breeder Zoe Small's dog was starved and kept in horrendous conditions

He said: “We made our way to the stable block which comprises four individual stables. The immediate area to some of the entrances of the stables was flooded. There was also an assortment of discarded items, a large number of tools including a small motorbike.

“The second stable from the left was where the information I had received was where Bella was being housed up until her removal the day before.

“The interior was very damp. The floor had an inch or two of sodden earth and other matter which was possibly old shavings.

“The floor also had a scattering of faeces. In one corner was a small triangular sectioned area which offered some cloth bedding which was damp.

“This sectioned off area would have been too small if Bella had had her pups within it. The rest of the stable offered no dry area if she had given birth on the floor.

“There was an empty bowl but no water to be seen. A scattering of dog food was on the floor by the stable door which appeared to have just thrown in on the sodden floor. The stable itself was approximately 12ft x 12ft with the bedding area being 4ft x 3ft x 2ft 6insdeep approximately.”

Sentencing | 200 hours of unpaid work; 20 rehabilitation activity requirement (RAR) days; costs of £250 and £114 to fund victim services. Banned from keeping a dog for eight years (expires July 2031).

ITV News
Kingsbridge Today
DevonLive

Additional Information

The following social media screenshots demonstrate that Zoe and Daniel Small were prolific backyard breeders.

Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
Plymouth backyard breeders Zoe Small, Daniel Small flog puppies on Facebook
dog attack, Dogs, security dogs, service and working dogs

Kingsteignton, South Devon: Emily Mace

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CONVICTED (2023) | Emily Mace, born c. 2000, of Little Barton, Kingsteignton, Newton Abbot TQ12 3QS – trained a dog to become aggressive leading to savage attacks on other dogs.

Devon woman Emily Mace trained dogs to be aggressive' before they savaged other dogs and a dog walker.

Emily Mace’s large Mastiff-type Conan attacked other dogs – one fatally – and also bit a woman after her extreme training methods led to him becoming aggressive.

The first incident happened in August 2021 when Janet Collins was walking her miniature schnauzer Lola in Long Barton playing fields. Mace was throwing a ball for Conan, an Alsatian/Mastiff cross and a third dog called Honcho.

As Miss Collins walked by, Conan bit Lola on the rear. She picked her dog up to keep her safe but Conan continued to jump up and bit the woman on the arm, puncturing the skin and causing significant bruising. She also suffered injuries to her hand.

Mace left the scene without showing much interest – telling Miss Collins to stand still during the incident – and was arrested later by police.

She told them her dogs made her feel safe.

The victim said in a statement she had never been so terrified in her life by the incident and could not believe Mace’s cold and uncaring attitude at the scene. She said it was clear her dog was dangerous and could cause serious damage.

A few months later, Mace agreed to re-home a greyhound named Blake but when she put the animal in with Conan and her other dog they went into ‘prey mode’ and fatally injured him.

Conan was under a dog behaviour order and required to be tethered in the garden. But Mace had placed a ‘totally inadequate’ loose collar around the animal.

She ignored a warning that Blake was unhappy in the larger dog’s presence and put them together, along with another pet, a Staffordshire-type dog named Luna.

“Luna and Conan began to savage Blake,” said RSPCA prosecutor Ms Susan Cavander. The attack was captured on video by a neighbour.

The two dogs went into ‘prey mode’, holding the greyhound down, locking their jaws and ripping at his throat, said the prosecutor.

Mace pulled the bleeding greyhound away and put him in a shed while she called vets.

The prosecutor said she seemed more intent in clearing up the mess than paying attention to the dog that was bleeding profusely and losing consciousness.

Blake lost a litre of blood and had to be put down by vets.

Mace posted videos on Facebook of her aggressive training techniques.

The court heard that she demonstrated a ‘total lack of understanding of the risk’ her pets posed or how to train them properly.

Mace pleaded guilty to having a dog dangerously out of control that caused injury.

She was convicted after trial of a separate offence of causing unnecessary suffering to a greyhound by failing to prevent him being attacked by other dogs.

Mace, who is pregnant, has since left her address and job as a result of online abuse. She was described in references as an animal lover and a kind person who is keen to work with probation. A pre-sentence report said she had shown superficial remorse.

Judge Anna Richardson said Mace had trained her dogs to be aggressive and could and should have intervened at the scene of the first ‘utterly terrifying’ incident.

An application for the destruction of Conan was to be considered at a later date but the outcome isn’t known.

Sentencing | 22-month custodial suspended for two years; 20 days of rehabilitation activity. £500 compensation. .Banned from keeping dogs for 15 years.

DevonLive

dog used as a weapon, Dogs

Kenton, Newcastle upon Tyne: Sean Bell

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CONVICTED (2023) | Sean Michael Bell, born c. 1985, of Banbury Road, Kenton, Newcastle upon Tyne NE3 – used his pet Staffy as a weapon against police officers, leading to the dog’s destruction.

Violent thug Sean Bell commanded his pet dog to attack two police officers during arrest, leading to a spell in prison for him and the dog losing his life.
Violent thug Sean Bell commanded his pet dog to attack two police officers during arrest, leading to a spell in prison for him and the dog losing his life.

In January 2022 officers from Northumbria Police attended an address in Blyth, Northumberland, in response to reports of domestic violence. On arrival they found Sean Bell drunk and sitting in his car outside the property where his then partner lived.

When officers attempted to detain Bell, he ordered his 10-year-old Staffy, Buster, who was sitting in the back seat, to “get them”. It was then that the dog attacked the officers. Bell encouraged the dog to keep attacking the officers while they tried to place handcuffs on him.

The female officer sustained bite wounds to her thigh and leg, with the male officer sustaining wounds to his thigh and calf.

Bell also attacked both officers and dished out verbal abuse before he was finally arrested.

In custody, Bell then spat at an officer, while screaming abuse from a custody suite.

Bell’s lawyer told the court that Buster is “not dangerous unless in the hands of someone not fit and proper”. She said members of Bell’s family could look after and insure the dog as well as muzzle him on walks. However, Recorder Mark Giuliani rejected this on the basis of Bell’s “chaotic” family background and instead ordered that Buster be destroyed.

A jury found Bell, who has previous convictions for criminal damage and assault occasioning actual bodily harm, guilty of two counts of being in charge of a dangerously out of control dog.

He was also found guilty of two counts of an assault with intent to avoid apprehension and one count of common assault.

He was sentenced to eight years and six months and banned from keeping pets for 18 years.

After sentencing on 4 April 2023, Ch Supt Sam Renninson said Bell’s actions were “completely unacceptable”. He added: “As a force filled with animal lovers, it is also distressing to see a dog used in such a way to attack our officers.

“It is important that anyone responsible for such behaviour is brought to justice, and I hope this case sends a clear message that this conduct will not be tolerated.”

Sentencing | eight years and six months in jail. Banned from keeping pets for 18 years.

Chronicle Live
ITV News
BBC News

dog attack, Dogs, ear cropping and tail docking, Serial Animal Abusers

Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester: Jade O’Brien

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CONVICTED (2023) | Jade O’Brien, born c. 1987, of Ack Lane, Cheadle Hulme, Stockport – left an XL bully in agony with untreated wounds to her ears.

Animal abuser: Jade O'Brien from Stockport failed to get treatment for her bulldog puppy's wounds leaving it in agony
Jade O’Brien told an RSPCA inspector she likes the crop-eared look on dogs

Jade O’Brien’s six-month-old XL bully-type breed called Babyface had stitch wounds that became infected after undergoing an ear cropping procedure, which is illegal in the UK.

O’Brien said the procedure had been carried out abroad but admitted she did not take the dog to a vet for treatment.

Stockport woman Jade O'Brien's puppy was left with untreated infected stitch wounds from ear cropping
O’Brien’s puppy was left with untreated infected stitch wounds from ear cropping

The RSPCA first became involved when Inspector Beth Fazakerley went to a vets in Accrington, Lancashire, on September 1, 2021 to examine two dogs who had been seized by police as part of an investigation under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.

Stockport woman Jade O'Brien's puppy was left with untreated infected stitch wounds from ear cropping

One of them was Babyface who had ‘prominent scars’ from stitches after recently having her ears cropped. A staff member confirmed that when the dog arrived at the kennels two weeks before, she was suffering with open wounds to both ears.

Stockport woman Jade O'Brien's puppy was left with untreated infected stitch wounds from ear cropping

In a witness statement Inspector Fazakerley said: “You could clearly see multiple horizontal scars and I was told that when she was seized she still had sutures that were cutting into her skin due to how inflamed and infected her ears were.”

Animal abuser: Jade O'Brien from Stockport failed to get treatment for her bulldog puppy's wounds leaving it in agony

O’Brien later told Inspector Fazakerley that the dog had been imported from the US and that she was bought with her ears already cropped.

“She informed me that she bought Babyface from America as she buys her dogs from there and she said she likes the cropped-eared look,” the inspector said. “She said she’d only had Babyface a few days and she’d bought her with her ears already cropped.”

“I asked if the dog had seen a vet and she said she didn’t want to take her as she knew she would get in trouble. But she’d asked her gardener, who breeds dogs, for help and he provided her with some antibiotics.”

O’Brien said she had administered one dose of antibiotics before the dog was seized from her home along with another female bully breed.

After being seized, Babyface was taken to a vet to have her stitches removed and she was treated with painkillers and antibiotics.

An expert vet said the wounds on each of the dog’s ear pinnas appeared to be less than a week old and were ‘severely infected’ with a ‘pus-like discharge.’

They concluded that Babyface would have been in pain for at least five days as she had not received any pain-killing medication.

O’Brien pleaded guilty to a charge of causing unnecessary suffering to a dog.

Another defendant has pleaded guilty to an animal welfare offence and will be sentenced at a later date, the RSPCA said.

Animal abuser: Jade O'Brien from Stockport failed to get treatment for her bulldog puppy's wounds leaving it in agony
History of violence: O’Brien is pictured during a court appearance in 2013 where she faced charges of assault

O’Brien, who has a 2013 conviction for assaulting a lollipop lady, claimed in mitigation she had ‘been influenced’ and ‘has health issues’.

Babyface was taken into the care of the RSPCA’s Southport, Ormskirk and District Branch who will now find her a new home.

Speaking after the case, inspector Fazakerley said: “Ear cropping is all about image and owners who do this to their dogs or take on ownership when this procedure has already been done don’t seem to realise the repercussions for the animals in terms of how it affects their behaviour or the dreadful pain they go through.”

Sentencing | 18 month community order with 30 rehabilitation activity requirement days; £495 in costs and victim surcharge. Deprivation orders on Babyface and the other bully breed dog. Three-year ban on keeping any canines (expires March 2026).

Manchester Evening News
ITV News

Update | December 2023

O’Brien has now been sentenced to four months in prison after an XL Bully she was in charge of mauled a dog owner and killed another dog in two horrifying attacks just two weeks apart.

Narla will be destroyed after her owner allowed her to be dangerously out of control, resulting in her killing another dog and biting a woman in two separate incidents

Manchester Magistrates’ Court heard how a woman was walking her one-year-old spaniel with her two children in July 2021 when she spotted a large grey dog running down O’Brien’s driveway. O’Brien was looking after Narla for her ex-partner when the attacks took place.

The woman worried by the XL Bully grabbed her spaniel but then the dog attacked her instead. She was forced back into a hedge and was bitten with serious injuries to her arms and legs while she was left with marks that were visible six months afterwards.

In a second attack just two weeks later, the XL Bully went for a small white dog that was being walked near O’Brien’s home. The teenage girl who was walking the animal ran away as she thought Narla was going to attack her but instead she went for her dog.

Sadly the white dog had to be put down by a vet after being badly bitten and having flesh ripped from her hind legs.

O’Brien pleaded guilty to two charges of being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control and one charge of using threatening, abusive and insulting words or behaviour.

Jonathan Condor, defending, told Manchester Magistrates’ Court that the XL Bully belonged to her former partner who was on remand in prison for allegedly assaulting her.

He claimed that the defendant was the victim of domestic abuse and had suffered a stroke but still accepted her responsibility for the attacks.

Mr Condor said that O’Brien was a “dog lover” and was upset by the attack on the teenager’s pet. She was also said to be “strongly opposed” to Narla being put down. He argued that O’Brien needed to “settle down and get a clean start”.

District judge Thomas Mitchell said he took O’Brien’s circumstances into consideration and that they had “to some extent been imposed upon” her by the ex-partner and that she was not the best person to be looking after the dog. But he jailed O’Brien for four months saying it was a serious case that required immediate custody.

O’Brien was also banned from owning a dog for five years, given a £154 victim surcharge and a destruction order was also made for the XL Bully Narla.

Mirror

Dogs, police dogs, service and working dogs, Violent and Sadistic Pet Abusers

Easterhouse, Glasgow: William Gauley

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CONVICTED (2022) | William Gauley, born c. 1994, of 63 Baldovan Crescent, Easterhouse, Glasgow G33 4LR – used his two dogs as a weapon against three police officers and a police dog.

Tragic: Boston (left) and Shadow lost their lives after their owner William Gauley ordered them to attack police officers and a police dog.
Tragic: Boston (left) and Shadow lost their lives after their owner William Gauley ordered them to attack police officers and a police dog.

A court ordered the destruction of bulldogs Boston and Mastiff after their owner, violent career criminal William Gauley, ordered them to attack the officers and PD Diesel.

Gauley, who was armed with a knife and meat cleaver, instructed the dogs to pounce on the officers as they tried to arrest his brother, Ryan Gauley.

One officer suffered three bites on the thigh, leaving him requiring eight or nine stitches, while another was bitten once and police dog Diesel was also attacked during the melee.

Gauley pleaded guilty to assaulting constables Ryan Plunkett, Martin O’Neill and David Craig.

He also admitted behaving in a threatening or abusive manner, being in charge of a dogs that were dangerously out of control as well as the unlawful possession of a knife and meat cleaver in a public place.

Sheriff Iain Fleming jailed Gauley for 27 months and disqualified him from owning a dog for four-and-a-half years.

An order was made for the dogs, who have been held in kennels since the incident, to be destroyed.

STV News

animal fighting / baiting, dog fighting, Dogs, farms / smallholdings, Food Production, foxes, hunting with dogs, Lifers, Organised Animal Crime, Worst of the Worst

Hounslow, West London: Humza Saleem

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CONVICTED (2021) | Humza Saleem, born 10 December 1997, of 36 Belgrave Road, Hounslow TW4 7BY – set his ‘fighting’ dog on a pig, killing it, and kept thousands of images and videos of barbaric animal fights on his phone.


Investigations were launched by the police after a pig was found to have been killed by a dog – the second such attack in the area. Police investigating the scene found a clean black designer wallet which had been recently dropped in a muddy field. Saleem was identified through items in the wallet by police and bailed pending investigation.

During the subsequent investigation Saleem’s mobile was examined which revealed thousands of disturbing images and videos, depicting animal fights, foxes and pigs being killed by dogs and dogs of a banned breed being trained on a treadmill.

Hertfordshire Police reported the case to the CPS who then authorised Saleem to be charged with a number of animal cruelty offences. Saleem originally pleaded not guilty but changed his plea at an appearance at St. Albans Magistrates’ Court on Friday 3 September.

He was convicted on two counts of causing an animal fight to take place, two counts of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, criminal damage, four counts of keeping an animal to use for animal fights and owning a prohibited pitbull-type dog.

ROST Sergeant Ryan Hemmings, who oversaw the operation, said: “This investigation uncovered some of the most disturbing animal cruelty offences I have ever come across.

“I would like to thank everyone involved with the investigation for working under some very upsetting circumstances to get this dangerous individual exposed and banned from keeping animals.

“Our work continues to trace others who are believed to be involved in this sickening criminal network. If you have any information which may assist, please contact police directly. Alternatively, you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers, to give information anonymously.”

Ashley Petchey, senior crown prosecutor, said: “This case demonstrates the lengths to which offenders will cause animal fights to take place, regardless of the risks to themselves, their animals and others in the wider community.

“The CPS worked closely with the police to build a strong case against Humza Saleem and we would like to thank Hertfordshire police for their diligence and hard work during the investigation. “We will continue to collaborate with the police to bring offenders of these disturbing crimes to justice.”

Sentencing: 23 weeks’ imprisonment, suspended for two years; ordered to pay £1,584 in kenneling costs to Hertfordshire Constabulary and £128 to the owner of the pig. Banned from owning animals for life. Destruction order for his dog.

This is Local London
CPS News

Cats, Dogs, Violent and Sadistic Pet Abusers, Worst of the Worst

Hatfield, Hertfordshire: Daniel Stasik

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CONVICTED (2019) | Daniel Stasik, born c. 1988, of Walker Grove, Hatfield AL10 9PL – allowed his banned-breed ‘fighting’ dog to savage a pet cat and failed to get help for the stricken animal.

Shelly, a cat that was fatally injured by a dog in Hatfield, just before she died.
Pet cat Shelly suffered horrific injuries in a dog attack from which she would never recover

At around 11am on June 23, 2018, a pitbull-type dog owned by Daniel Stasik chased a cat named Shelly into an alleyway in Walker Grove and attacked her. Stasik grabbed the dog, but was unable to keep control of him.

He did not attempt to assist the cat or find her owners to get medical assistance.

Around 1am the following morning, Shelly was found by her owner in a nearby garden covered in blood and faeces and unable to place any weight on her hind legs.

Due to the length of time she had been left, there were maggots around her wounds.

Over the next few days, Shelly’s condition deteriorated and following multiple treatments and attempts at resuscitation, she died from her injuries on July 1, 2018.

On July 20, officers from the Welwyn Hatfield Safer Neighbourhood Team and the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Dog Unit attended Stasik’s address to execute a warrant to seize his dog.

The dog was examined and confirmed to be substantially a pit bull-type.

Stasik was reported to court for possessing a fighting dog under Section 1 of the Dangerous Dogs Act and causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal under Section 4 of the Animal Welfare Act.

At court, Stasik pleaded guilty to possessing a fighting dog and, while initially pleading not guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to Shelly, was found guilty of that offence.

PC Gavin Richardson, from the Welwyn Hatfield West Safer Neighbourhood Team, said: “Pit bulls are banned in the UK and Stasik’s dog posed a very serious danger to public safety.

“Not only did Stasik have possession of a banned dog breed, but he made no attempts to help save the cat and instead simply left her to die.

“This was extremely distressing for her owners who found their beloved pet in an incredibly distressed state with horrendous injuries.

“I hope that this sentence provides some justice for the victims and that the public feel safe knowing that Stasik will not be allowed to have dog for another decade.”

Sentencing | 240 hours of unpaid community work. Ordered to pay compensation to Shelly’s owners for vet costs and to the police for kenneling costs. Banned from having custody of a dog for 10 years. Stasik’s dog was ordered to be put down, unless an appeal is lodged within 21 days.

Welwyn Hatfield Times

Additional Information

We’re building quite a profile on this piece of filth. He is from Poland. He came to the UK in 2009 to work as a painter/decorator but is now living on benefits.

He showed no remorse in court and he and his friend seemed to find the proceedings amusing.

He freely admitted in court that he beat his dog.

Another cat belonging to Shelly’s heartbroken owner died after being deliberately poisoned. This happened just after Stasik was charged. Coincidence?

Stasik has another address in Prayle Grove, London NW2 1BD