A dog owner whose two pit bulls mauled a jogger faces jail after the Brisbane City Council decided to pursue stronger action.
Real estate agent Ajay Malik, 37, was running through 7th Brigade Park in Chermside last week when he was attacked by two dogs.
The dogs were still mauling Mr Malik when first responders arrived and tried to help him.
He suffered serious injuries and was rushed to Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital for urgent care.
His family say he faces a long road to recovery both mentally and physically following the attack.
Two days after the attack, police found another’s man body nearby and it was revealed that he died the same day Mr Malik was mauled.
Police cannot rule out that he was also attacked by the dogs.
Brisbane City Council is now pursuing stronger action against the dogs’ owner Layla Evans after cancelling an order to destroy the dogs this week.
The City were forced to withdraw the order so they could pursue a more serious application with higher penalties.
Ms Evans faces penalties up to $120,890 or two years’ imprisonment, depending on the offence, under Queensland legislation.
Brisbane Councillor Sarah Hutton said the attack on Mr Malik was absolutely horrific and their thoughts were with him and everyone affected by this shocking incident.
“The seriousness of this attack demands the strongest possible response, which is why we’ve escalated our action to pursue much tougher penalties against the owner,” she said.
“Both dogs remain securely held by Council and protecting the community remains our absolute priority.
“We know people want swift action and so do we, but we must follow the State Government’s strict legal processes.
“We’re also working closely with Queensland Police and the progress of our enforcement action will depend on their ongoing investigations.
“We will use every power available to us to protect residents and hold irresponsible dog owners to account.”
The City issued a destruction order on Saturday to get the dogs off the streets, but withdrew it on Wednesday.
With both dogs secured, the City escalated its response under State legislation to pursue stronger enforcement options and higher penalties.
Ms Evans has 14 days from October 21 to respond to the proposed dangerous dog declaration before Council decides if a new destruction order will be issued.