Living in Peru : your everyday companion

Lima | 16 July, 2006 [ 09:35 ]

Rottweiler watchdog kills presumed car thief in parking lot

Since last Tuesday "Lay Fung" sits behind bars. He is accused of causing the death of a man entering a parking lot he was ordered to guard. His future remains up in the air. Some think that he should be put to death, others maintain the Rottweiler dog was just doing his job. A judge will have to decide his destiny within the next days. In the meantime he remains in his narrow A-46 cell at an anti-rabies center in Chacra Ríos.

The 4-year old Rottweiler is currently undergoing medical tests to determine if he has rabies. If the tests turn out positive, it will be his sure death sentence. In either case, the director of the dog center Mónica Villanueva said that he will be injected with a supersaturated toxic which will keep him asleep.

Many legal experts believe that the law protects the animal in these cases, therefore it is unlikely that Lay Fung is executed. Although the Peruvian law dictates that all dogs who kill or injure people or other animals must be sacrificed, there is also the exception from the rule: different measures apply when dogs are defending their owners or private property.

“The dog was trained to watch and acted by attacking the intruder, therefore he doesn't have to be sacrificed, so says the law”, maintains Lyda Piaggio Ruiz, president of the Association of Animal Protection, adding that the dogs are just doing what they are trained to do by their master.

However, that would mean that future of the dog's owner Fernando Llanos Mejía is uncertain. He could be charged with homicide or manslaughter according to the Penal Code. In cases like this the owner is held criminally responsible for attack and caused damage. In Peruvian times like this in which citizen insecurity is a major concern and crime rates are high, this risk exists for many people resorting to dogs to protect their houses or business premises.

According to criminal attorney Mario Amoretti, who created an analysis of the Penal Code's related articles, an owner can be accused of intentional homicide if he trained his animals to kill. If a dangerous dog guards a property and the owner neglected to put up a visible warning sign, he can be charged with second degree homicide.

“Dog owners definitely must take all necessary precautions to avoid the risks of attacks; if he doesn't he can be held criminally responsible”, he warned.

Every night Lay Fung guarded the parked cars at Avenida Abancay where the deadly incident happened. His fate has created much sympathy among the public. In a survey conducted on "El Comercio's" website, of a total of 3,505 participants 87.87% thought that the dog should be spared the death penalty, only 10.96% requested that he should receive the lethal injection. Of those in the dog's favor, 1,440 requested that he should be given back to his owner, whereas 1,640 suggested he should be integrated in a Police Canine squad.

Among those who responded in an online forum, many believe Lay Fung is a dog "hero" and inquired about adopting him.

Latest update:
Since Saturday the dog is legally represented by lawyer Juan Aragón Villena. He is investigating the case and tries to prevent that the dog is put to death. Lay Fun was transferred to Huacho yesterday where he will receive the necessary attention until the police investigation is completed. The lawyer also clarified that Lay Fung was bred by the parking lot's security personnel.
The chief of the Police' Homicide Division, colonel Leonardo Morales Naupari, said that the Rottweiler was originally trained by the Canine Police Division but couldn't tell in what year.
Police is still trying to figure out if the guard send the dog to attack or if the animal smelled, located and attacked the victim all by itself.

The victim was identified as Wilson Paredes Quispe, a known drug user who spent much of his life in and out of prison on robbery convictions. His last release from Lurigancho penitentiary came last year.

The police also revealed that another dog, a pit bull, attacked an old man in San Juan de Lurigancho. The victim, Lucas Ruiz Guevara (74), suffered serious arm wounds.


tags : Peru law justice watchdog Rottweiler security LayFung attack police

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3 Comments

# alcides c says :
20 July, 2006 [ 20:39 ]

i think lay fun should not be put to sleep cause he was doing his job of protecting the place from low life piece of sh*&% like the guy he killed.i have a 5 year old rottweiler myself and if someone broke into my house to steal id help my dog kill the robber.lay fun is a great dog and should be allowed to live not destroyed by stupid people who dont care about animal rights

# Dog Lover says :
25 July, 2006 [ 16:45 ]

I believe Lay Fung should not be put to death. There are millions of hard working Americans who don't deserve to have thieves take what we legally work for. I have a 2 year Rot and he is very gentle with the entire family. However, if someone did decide to break in or hurt one of his family members, I have no doubt, he would attack the intruder. However, he is not trained to attack. He's just one of the our family members. I'm happy to see Lay Fung is represented by an Attorney. If that criminal would not have broke in - he would be still living today and still victimizing innocents people. So I don't feel sorry that he is dead as a result of his contributory behavior is attempting to take something that doesn't rightfully belong to him. If his family was that concerned about him, why did they try to get him some real professional help before he decided to enter into his personally made death bed.

# Syedur Rahman Sakir says :
6 September, 2006 [ 02:58 ]

With all my heart I believe the dog should not be harmed. The reason is, no gets a guarding dog to show off and, on top of all if they dont approach and charge any unknown person then why should the thiefs stay away? then if a dog charges any one, like a guy who was a robber (who dont care about human life), then the guy can even attack the dog, therefore whatever the dog did he did it for his own life and defending his owners property. so it cannot be the dogs fault.
( any dog expert will say the same thing that a dog wont attack and kill a big creature like human until they are threatened, they usually bite and after sometime barks from a distance, so the dog must be in a threat. )
At last, why should someone get into someone's lawn, at night, without warning? the investigators should answare this question before deciding any thing about the dog.
What if the dog had killed any terrorist while the terrorist was trying to kill any great personatities of some country, wouldn't the dog be a hero.
Dogs just defend his family and property, for a good dog, whatever it takes.

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