Man bled to death after being bitten by American XL Bully, court hears

A man died from extreme blood loss after suffering "catastrophic injuries" when he was bitten on the leg by an American XL bully in his daughter-in-law's garden, a court has heard.

Keven Jones, 62, from Chester, who was in poor health, taking methadone and blood thinning medication, was staying at Chanel Fong's house at the time of the incident.

The incident took place before XL Bullies were added to the banned dog list in October 2023.

Fong, 33, denies being the owner of the dog, which the prosecution said was dangerously out of control at the time, and also denies an alternative charge of being the person in charge of a dog at the time of the attack.

Opening the case at Caernarfon Crown Court, prosecutor Mark Connor said it was a "sad and tragic case for everyone concerned" and told the jury they would be shown some "graphic images" of Jones' injuries during the trial.

He said it was not a case of whether the XL Bully, named Cookie, was a banned breed, but rather that the dog had been "dangerously out of control" and whether Fong was legally responsible for it, either as its owner or the person responsible for it at the time.

The court was told the dog was owned by Fong and her partner, Joshua Jones, the son of the victim, but that he was not present at the time of the attack.

Connor added that, in her police interview, Fong said on paper Cookie belonged to her partner.

He went on to describe how there were a number of dogs at the property on Holt Road in Wrexham, including Cookie and another XL Bully called Fire, who were in the back garden at the time.

Cookie's mother, an XL Bully called Rogue, was inside the property and was "in season" meaning she had been kept separate from the other dogs in the house.

At about 11:30 BST on 23 May 2022, Jones told Fong he would get the two dogs in and Fong then heard Jones shout "Cookie, get off me mate".

The court heard she had called into the garden for Cookie to get down and Jones had approached her. He was "wobbly" and pointed to his leg where blood was pumping out and said "he's got me there".

Connor said the prosecution accepts that Fong immediately called the emergency services and attempted first aid, including applying pressure to the wound, however Jones could not be saved.

A post-mortem examination established that he had died from extreme blood loss caused by dog bites.

Cookie was later humanely euthanised with the consent of Fong and Jones' son.

Connor told the jury they might come to the view that at the "material time" two people may have been in charge of the dog, Fong and Jones, but he said the prosecution did not agree due to Jones' poor health, which was known to Fong.

"He had been left on his own to deal with two powerful XL Bully's while Fong was in the living room.

"She was also aware that Cookie's mother, another XL Bully, was in season in the house, which she knew could have led to issues with Cookie, a male dog."

He said her "omission" of not going to assist Jones to bring the dogs inside, with that knowledge, created what became a "catastrophic state of affairs".

The court also heard from the first witness in the case, Det Con Kate Pollard, who was in charge of the investigation.

She read Fong's account to the court as she had posted it on social media in the days following Jones' death, in which she described him as someone who handled the dogs "just as good as me and Josh".

The Facebook post went on to describe how she had heard Jones telling Cookie to get off and telling her he had been bitten.

She also said she tried to stop the bleeding and had performed chest compressions while waiting for the ambulance, adding she could "not shake off the feeling" of Jones' blood on her hands.

As Fong sobbed in the dock while listening to Pollard, the police officer continued to read the account to court, where Fong described Cookie as not having "deliberately" attacked Jones but that he "plays too rough" and thought he was "still a puppy".

Pollard expressed her grief for the loss of both Jones and Cookie.

The trial continues.