Sunday, October 2, 2005

Brazil: Boy, 2, mauled to death by his grandparents' pit bull

BRAZIL -- A pit bull killed a 2-year-old boy, attacking the child as he was playing in the backyard of his grandmother’s house in southern Brazil, local media reported Saturday.

Guilherme Vieira was with his 6-year-old brother when the grandmother’s dog suddenly attacked them Thursday night in Ponta Grossa, 400 kilometers (250 miles) south of Sao Paulo, the Folha Online news service reported.

The boy suffered severe wounds to his neck and head, and died shortly after being admitted to a hospital, firefighters said. His brother escaped unharmed after the grandmother called authorities.

The family said the dog, which was unleashed at the time of the incident, had always been around the children without problems, but neighbors told Folha that it had attacked other people before.

Police was investigating the case, and could charge the grandparents with involuntary manslaughter.

(Latin American Herald Tribune - Oct 2, 2005)