Boy and two men mauled by German Shepherd in south London as police hunt owner

A seven-year-old boy and two men have been attacked by a German Shepherd in south London as police hunt the dog’s owner.

Officers rushed to reports of a man and a child being attacked by an “aggressive dog” at Broughton Road, Thornton Heath at 9am on Wednesday.

They found the and an adult suffering bite injuries. As they captured the dog, officers were approached by another man claiming to have also been attacked.

Police confirmed that none of the victims had suffered life-threatening injuries.

A spokesperson for the force added: “The dog, which appeared to be a German shepherd breed, was seized by officers and will be assessed.

“Enquiries are underway to identify and locate the owner of the dog.”

It comes as the mother of a 10-year-old boy who died after being mauled by a dog has called for a change in the law.

Emma Whitfield, 32, is calling for “Jack Lis Law”, named after her son who died in November 2021 in Pentwyn, Penyrheol, near Caerphilly, South Wales, after the attack by an XL Bully – a breed developed from the American pit bull terrier.

The dog’s owner Brandon Hayden, then 19, was sentenced in June 2022 to just over four years at a young offenders’ institution and Amy Salter, then 29, was jailed for three years after they pleaded guilty to being in charge of the out of control dog, which was named Beast.

A further 15 people have lost their lives in dog attacks in the 18 months since Jack’s death, including an 83-year-old woman in Caerphilly, while there were nearly 22,000 cases of injuries from out of control dogs in 2022.