THE owner of a dog that pounced on two children and two adults in Marbella last week has finally been located.
Minors, aged nine and eleven, were bit repeatedly by a vicious dog on the seafront in San Pedro de Alcantara.
Tearing apart trousers and leaving deep injuries, the hound was ‘bound to kill’, Ivan, one of the adults present at the scene, said in conversation with SUR.
READ MORE: Home invasion crew nabbed after €200,000 loot bust on Costa del sol
The dog owner’s arrest only came on Saturday, days after the attack.
Located through the microchip carried by the animal, which was a three-year old Belgian Malinois shepherd dog, police found out that the owner was a 52-year-old man living in Maracena in the Granada province.
Then, in the early hours of Saturday morning, patrolling officers spotted a BMW in Guadalmina that they knew belonged to the owner.
The mother of the younger child desperately tried to save both kids but as she lifted her son up from the ground the hound began jumping and biting her legs.
Upon arrest the man said that he kept his dog chained to the handbrake of his car where he slept. The mechanism that operates the driver’s side window was broken which meant the dog could slip out.
READ MORE: Marbella hospitality empire, La Sala, celebrates its 15th birthday in style
His pet had escaped a few days earlier and since then he had been searching for it.
Now the owner is detained for gross negligence that caused harm – he could be facing fines of between 500 and 30,000 for violating municipal orders on animal ownership.
The man’s savage dog put multiple lives in danger with a passerby ultimately saving the children’s lives.
Ivan was running along the beach when he noticed the incident occuring; he rushed over and managed to push the dog away and pick up one of the children.
As the dog continued to jump and bite, Ivan spotted a nearby restaurant.
READ MORE: Sewage storm: Expats outraged as heavy rain forces human waste onto their street
“At one point [the dog] jumped up and latched onto my left arm. It wouldn’t let go,” Ivan told SUR.
Eventually he brought the child to safety by placing him inside the restaurant’s building and then managed to get himself inside once the dog released his arm.
His heroic act came at a price as he ended up with a ten-centimetre-long and five-centimetre-deep injury that required stitches.
He did however save both children and the mother as none of them sustained any serious injuries.
After Tuesday’s incident the dog, a three-year old Belgian Malinois shepherd dog, was captured and taken to the Triple A animal shelter in Marbella.
As an inspector carries out tests to determine whether the hound is aggressive or can live in society, the shelter is under quarantine, according to SUR.
Click here to read more Marbella News from The Olive Press.
