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American Woman Mauled To Death By Her Two Pitbulls

American Woman Mauled To Death By Her Two Pitbulls

Virginian Sheriff James Agnew said: "In my 40 years of law enforcement I've never seen anything quite like it."

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

Bethany Stephens suffered horrific injuries when she was reportedly mauled to death by her two pit bull dogs. The 22-year-old was taking the two animals for a walk through woodlands near her dad's home in Goochland County, Virginia.

Investigators say it took a whopping eight hours to collect all their evidence, illustrating just how grisly a scene it was. Sheriff James Agnew told WTVR: "There were various articles of clothing, under clothing scattered about the area not far from the body and torn into small pieces, there were patches of blood.

"It was very clear the woman in the woods had suffered severe injuries consistent with being mauled by these dogs.

"There were no strangulation marks, the victim had puncture wounds in the skull and this was not a homicide."

The Sheriff says it appears the young woman had plenty of defensive wounds, meaning she desperately tried to fend off the dogs before her death. According to Fox News, Mr Agnew believes the pit bulls were bred for fighting.

"In my 40 years of law enforcement I've never seen anything quite like it. I hope I never see anything like it again," he added.

Alarm bells started ringing when Bethany didn't come home that night and her dad called the police. But while he waited for them to arrive, he went searching for his daughter in the woodlands and quickly found her mangled body.

The Mirror reports that the two animals are currently in the care of Goochland Animal Control and will likely be put down.

A 2009 study from the American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology found that pit bulls, Rottweilers and German shepherds were responsible for the majority of fatal dog attacks in the state of Kentucky.

Several other studies list the breed as dangerous or responsible for fatalities.

But American Pit Bull Foundation founder Sara Enos told Time Magazine: "It really boils down to being responsible owners. Any dog from any breed can be aggressive, it matters how it's treated."

This is backed up by Marcy Setter of the Pit Bull Rescue Center, who also told the publication: "There is not any breed of dog that is inherently more dangerous."

Sources: WTVR, Mirror, Time Magazine, Live Science

Featured Image Credit: Facebook/Bethany Stephens

Topics: Death, Police, Dog, News, Animal, US News