A couple has been remanded in custody for two days after their three dogs attacked a 25-year-old domestic worker and two children in Limassol on Sunday, with the case now being investigated as serious criminal negligence.
The dog owners, a 43-year-old man and a 36-year-old woman, were arrested and appeared before Limassol District Court on Monday.
The attack occurred when the 25-year-old was walking two young boys from the family. A worker at a nearby business discovered the bloodied woman with the children and, with help from a café employee, provided first aid before calling an ambulance.
The 25-year-old victim sustained serious bite wounds to the right side of her body, including her knee, thigh and arm. The worker who found her transported the domestic worker and children to his vehicle for protection and contacted the children’s father.
Contradictory accounts
During questioning, the 36-year-old woman claimed she had taken precautions to prevent the dogs from escaping, stating she had installed double iron mesh on the property’s gates after previous escape incidents. She insisted the dogs had never shown aggressive behaviour but admitted they broke through the mesh on Sunday.
The woman said she searched the area for the animals but was eventually informed of the incident by police, who returned the dogs to her at the station. She claimed the dogs had passports and said the largest was given to her as a gift two years ago by someone who recently died. The other two belonged to a friend who left them when departing Cyprus.
The 43-year-old man claimed he was in Platres on Sunday morning and had owned three dogs for a year without proper licences. He also insisted he had taken precautions to prevent escapes and that the dogs had never shown aggression.
Neither suspect presented documents proving legal ownership, microchipping or registration of the dogs as required by law. The woman provided a dog passport that police said was incomplete, lacking owner and animal details.
Father disputes claims
The children’s father, who rushed to the scene after being contacted, contradicted the suspects’ accounts. He stated that when he arrived, the gates of the enclosed plot where the suspects live were open, and the 43-year-old suspect appeared to be operating lifting equipment.
The father claimed this was not the first incident of aggression, alleging the dogs had previously invaded the family’s yard, killing cats and chickens from their coop. The suspects’ property, used as a residence in an industrial area, is approximately 600 metres from the attack site.
Investigation continues
Police are conducting further investigations, including reviewing CCTV footage from four specific locations to determine how the dogs escaped and the circumstances of the attack.
The suspects face multiple charges including reckless and negligent acts, specifically failing to take precautions to prevent a dog in their possession from attacking and causing bodily harm to others, possession of an unlicensed, unregistered and unmarked dog, failure to take adequate measures to prevent dog escape contrary and dog possession.
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