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Family finds body of man mauled to death trying to stop dog fight, Illinois cops say

An Illinois man was mauled to death while trying to stop two dogs from fighting, Kewanee police said. His family found his body on April 25.
An Illinois man was mauled to death while trying to stop two dogs from fighting, Kewanee police said. His family found his body on April 25. Getty Images | Royalty Free

A family returned home from a trip to find their loved one’s body after a deadly dog attack, according to Illinois authorities.

The 66-year-old man died April 25 after being mauled while trying to break up a fight between two dogs at his home in Kewanee around 6 p.m., police said in a news release. Officers arrived just before 12:30 a.m. on a report of an unresponsive male.

The victim was found “bleeding from multiple wounds” and pronounced dead at the scene, police said. One of the dogs had bitten him several times, causing significant injuries.

It’s unclear if one or both dogs belonged to the man.

Police learned the man’s family was out of town at the time and that he called to tell them what happened, according to the release. Relatives advised him to seek medical attention, but he said he had bandaged his wounds and would be OK.

They found his body hours later after returning home around midnight, police said.

Both dogs were impounded at the city’s animal control facility, according to authorities. The “aggressive” dog suspected in the deadly attack was euthanized after it was deemed “vicious” and “a danger to the community.”

The second dog, which was hurt in the attack, remains at animal control and is being evaluated, police said.

Kewanee is about 150 miles southwest of Chicago.

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This story was originally published May 5, 2022 at 3:37 PM with the headline "Family finds body of man mauled to death trying to stop dog fight, Illinois cops say."

Tanasia Kenney
Sun Herald
Tanasia is a service journalism reporter at the Charlotte Observer | CharlotteFive, working remotely from Atlanta, Georgia. She covers restaurant openings/closings in Charlotte and statewide explainers for the NC Service Journalism team. She’s been with McClatchy since 2020.
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