Owner of 'killer XL Bullies' that mauled gran said 'no one tells me what to do'

04 February 2024 , 12:47

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Owner of 'killer XL Bullies' that mauled gran said 'no one tells me what to do'

The owner of two XL Bullies that savaged a grandmother to death yesterday had been warned the dogs were dangerous, her grieving family said.

The victim of the attack in Jaywick, Essex has been confirmed as Esther Martin, 68, a retired Tesco worker and a mother of four. A man has been arrested on suspicion of dangerous dog offences after officers were called to Hillman Avenue shortly after 4pm yesterday and arrived to find a woman "seriously injured" on the scene where she was later pronounced dead.

Kelly Fretwell, daughter of the victim, has confirmed that the dogs involved in the attack were of the recently banned XL Bully breed. She claims that there were eight XL Bullies present in the house - six puppies and the two adults who attacked the victim - when her mother was left there alone.

Esther Martin who died after being attacked by dogs (Martin family / SWNS)

She said the victim was visiting the house of the man that owned the dogs to see her 11-year-old grandson, who was in his care. The quick-thinking boy rushed out shouting for help when the dogs attacked, the family have said.

Kelly told the Mirror: “She was amazing. She was retired and trying to bring her life back on track after the passing of my sister two years ago. She came to visit my nephew and now she is dead. We told him that they were dangerous. He said ‘nobody can tell me what to do with my dogs.’

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Police at the scene of the attack (Eastnews Press Agency)

The family say that although the attack had taken place around 4pm they did not find out what had happened until 10 o’clock that night when police arrived at her front door. She said: “This is a very distressing time for our family. If someone knocked on your door at night to say that your mum had been mauled to death, would you believe them?”

“There could have been two victims, my nephew has not only lost his mum and grandmother but he had to witness all this violence. He could have been killed as well.”

Esther's other daughter Sonia Martin told MailOnline: "Her grandson was in the house. He came running out shouting for help. We would like to thank all the neighbours who tried to help our mum."

Speaking to reporters, Esther's family said she was a retired Tesco worker and had four children. Her daughter Kelly Fretwell, 46, said she was a dedicated grandmother, who tried to see her grandson as often as she could. Mrs Martin has two other living children, aged 47 and 45.

Adam Aspinall