Neighborhood In Mourning After Modesto Man Mauled To Death By Pit Bulls
/ CBS Sacramento
MODESTO (CBS13) — A neighborhood was in mourning the day after a man lost his life fending off a pack of pit bulls that were attacking his elderly mother.
According to friends of the victim's family, the mother is at a medical center in Modesto in critical condition, but it's unclear if she knows yet that her son is gone.
Olivia Montes still can't believe her longtime friend Juan Fernandez was killed by four vicious pit bulls in the backyard of his Glenn Avenue home.
"He was a good guy, he had a big heart, everybody knew him," she said. "It's just sad."
With dried blood left behind, neighbors said they heard the screaming. Fernandez had apparently intervened after the four dogs broke loose from the next yard over, attacking his aging mother.
"There was a guy laying down, four dogs on top of him, and my dad grabbed a random stick and tried to scare them away," said neighbor Benjamin Prado.
But they would be too late.
"It was horrible, the dogs had a lot of blood, it was horrible. I was scared," said David Prado.
Deputies would eventually shoot and kill all four pit bulls. The owner has been found, but the investigation is ongoing.
Meanwhile, 77-year-old Maria Fernandez remains hospitalized.
"I could see that, because that's how Juan was, Juan loved his mom. He would do anything for his mom," Montes said.
Montes is left to hope her friend's death is a lesson for animal owners everywhere.
"If you can't control your animal you shouldn't have any," she said. "I'm a pet lover myself, I have found little chihuahuas and a German shepard, my dogs are always in the yard."
A full necropsy will be performed on the dogs.
The owners could face a civil lawsuit to repay medical bills and funeral costs in addition to possible charges.
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