Davanagere woman dies after brutal Rottweiler attack, dog owner arrested

DAVANAGERE: In a horrific incident, a woman died after being mauled by two Rottweiler dogs on the outskirts of Davanagere in the early hours of December 5. The owner of the dogs was arrested within 24 hours of the case being registered.

According to police, Anita Kom was walking towards Honnur between 12.30 am and 2.30 am when she was attacked near a house in front of Mallikarjuna’s residence close to NH-48 under the jurisdiction of the Davanagere Rural police station. Initially mistaken for a stray dog attack, the assault left her with severe injuries to the face, hands and legs after the two Rottweiler dogs tore into her flesh.

Locals Honnuru Karibasappa and Mallikarjuna, who had gone to irrigate their fields, spotted the dogs and attempted to chase them away. When the animals did not retreat, they immediately contacted emergency service 112. With police assistance, the victim was rescued and shifted to CG Hospital in Davanagere. She was later referred to Bengaluru for advanced treatment, but succumbed to her injuries around 9 am while being transported.

Under the supervision of Superintendent of Police Uma Prashant, senior officers and a team led by Davanagere Rural Police Inspector Annaiah K T launched an intensive search to trace the owners of the animals. After collecting intelligence from multiple sources, police apprehended the 27-year-old Shailesh Kumar P, a resident of Devaraj Us Layout.

During interrogation, Shailesh confessed that he owned three Rottweiler dogs — Brado, Puppy and Hero — and admitted that two of them, Puppy and Hero, had recently become aggressive. He told police he and his father-in-law had abandoned the two dogs near Honnur around 10.30 pm on December 4 after being “fed up” with their behaviour. Despite being aware of the potential danger, he left them unattended, leading to the fatal attack on Anita.

A case has been registered under Sections 291, 105, and 106(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at the Davanagere Rural Police Station. Shailesh has been arrested and produced before the court. SP Uma Prashant commended Inspector Annaiah K T and team members Ramesh and Nagabhushan for cracking the case and arresting the accused within 24 hours. (ANI)