A man in Nyeri has died after he was attacked by two killer dogs on Monday evening when he went to visit an ailing relative in Kamakwa village, Nyeri County.
Francis Mathenge, 75, was bitten and clawed to death by the two German Shepherd dogs belonging to a neighbour to his cousin, John Ndegwa, whom he had gone to visit.
Ndegwa had recently undergone surgery and Mathenge went to visit him but by mistake ended up in a neighbouring home, which was being guarded by the dogs. That was when the two fierce guard dogs pounced on him, tearing into his flesh for 30 minutes. The occupants of the homestead were away during the vicious attack.
According to Ndegwa, neighbours heard dogs barking and growling and on checking, found the canines descending on the old man.
An eyewitness, Isaac Kimathi, said the old man clothes were tattered and torn off from his body. He said that it took them up to 30 minutes to drive the fierce dogs away.
“I have never seen dogs attack a person in such a manner. They were still trying to drag him away as we were rescuing him,” said Kimathi.
The victim was rushed to the Nyeri County Referral Hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival as he has suffered multiple bites in his neck that caused him to bleed severely.
The dogs' owner, Maina Gitahi, said he will not get rid of the dogs as they have been helping him keep thieves at bay since he brought them in.
Nyeri Central Divisional Police Boss Masai Makau confirmed the incident and said that investigations into the matter were underway to establish if the owner of the dogs is culpable.