The Oakland Police Department says it is looking into a series of incidents in which dogs injured people and pets around city parks. Witnesses and dog owners say many of the attacks involve the same man and his two cane corsos.
The Lake Merritt attack
On the morning of Friday, Oct. 23, Tomiquia Moss, California's secretary of housing and homelessness, was walking her 12-year-old dog, Pepper, at Lakeside Park by Lake Merritt. She saw two large dogs jump two fences, off-leash, and run straight at them. "I couldn't get them to release her," Moss told SFGATE. "I was screaming."
Moss said both dogs bit and shook Pepper for about three minutes before a park worker and the owner got them under control. The owner left without giving his name, she told the Daily Californian. Pepper had collapsed ribs and was moved from Grand Lake Veterinary Hospital to a specialty hospital, but she died despite treatment.
A pattern of attacks?
Tina Lauchengco, who saw the attack, told the Daily Californian she has collected reports of nine similar attacks from social media and local dog groups. She also shared video with SFGATE that appears to show the owner confronting a woman near his truck with one of the dogs. Lauchengco said she believes the woman was bitten. Lauchengco said Oakland Animal Services Director Joe DeVries told her the case is being treated as a criminal matter.
OPD said in an email that it is working with Oakland Animal Services, but it hasn't confirmed how many attacks there have been or whether the same dogs were involved, and it cited the open investigation. Berkeley police said they have received no reports related to the attacks, though a poster circulating online alleges incidents in Downtown and Southwest Berkeley and at the Berkeley Marina. The owner has not been publicly identified.
OPD asks anyone who was involved in or witnessed a related incident to contact Oakland Animal Services or OPD's Criminal Investigation Division.