Pit Bulldogs Kill 2 Adults in Newport, Tennessee

Pit Bulldogs Kill 2 Adults in Newport, Tennessee Martha Rose Woodward Never in our wildest nightmares could we imagine being mauled and bitten to death by dogs within sight of our own homes. This frightening experience not only happened to one man in Cocky County, Tennessee in April 2021, but also to a woman living near the same address in July 2021. Cocke County, Tennessee is located in far Eastern Tennessee bordering North Carolina and is very rural. The population of the entire county is currently approximately 36,000. Newport, the county seat, has 7,000 residents. Although these tragic events were horrid enough on their own, the way the media and the local investigators handled the cases came under suspicion. Possibly the controversies erupted because when the second death was announced most people living the Metropolitan Knoxville Area had not heard about the first death. The center of the complaints contained information that the same dogs, said to be “old, big pit bulldogs” were handled by a trainer and had more than likely killed both people. Why the Cocke County Sheriff’s Department had not removed and destroyed the dogs is under severe scrutiny. The extent of the injuries to Tony Ahrens, 52, are not readily available. He was found dead near his home and “had apparently been partially eaten by animals.” Amber Mills, 29, was found by area residents and taken to a hospital. Both of her arms were “…barely attached to her torso, and one leg was mostly chewed off,” said Regina Jozefek, her aunt. Just after the date of the second incident, the Cocke County Sheriff’s Office posted the following short press release. It was reposted on a Cocke County Life Facebook page. Labeled as Cocke County Sheriff Office PRESS RELEASE July 17, 2021 at 12:57 PM: “The Cocke County Sheriff’s Office and as a request of our agency the TBI has been requested to assist our agency only and we are currently investigating an assault that occurred near Jimtown Road on July 12, 2021. A similar incident occurred on the same road on April 1, 2021 that resulted in the death of Tony Ahrens. Due to this being an active investigation, other names and specific details are not being released. Officers are working diligently, collecting evidence and statements. If anyone has information that will assist, please contact the Cocke County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division at 423-623-6004. You can remain anonymous. From the Cocke County Life Facebook page: 7/19/21: Woman Killed by Pack of Dogs Cocke County, TN - A 29-year old woman died after being viciously attacked by a pack of dogs near the intersection of Jimtown Road and Carnation Way. This is the second fatal animal attack in the same area in four months. On April 1, Tony Allen Ahrens, 52-years old, was also found dead in the area. His body appeared to have been partially devoured by an animal, reported the Citizen Tribune. Police have since been sitting on that case. Now a young woman is also dead. A comment in the Cocke County Life Facebook group, sums up the horrific scenario. "I'm sorry but had appropriate action been taken with the first incident there wouldn't be have been a need for the public to take action and speak out about what is going on! Everyone has the freedom of speech … Maybe these posts will save another life because I see NOTHING from authorities that states the public is safe and these dogs have been removed from this man or put down!" Another commenter stated that the dogs' owner is a trainer. "He is a trainer it's obviously he trained them dogs that particular way this is the second time a person lost they life yes he is guilty because he knew what he was doing when he trained them dogs [sic]." A sheriff’s office spokesperson declined to comment when asked if investigators believed the animals involved in the attacks belonged to anyone and if they planned to press charges, reports WATE-TV. It took the family members of Amber Miller, who was attacked on July 12 and died six days later, speaking to the media in order for the public to learn more information about these two deaths. Next, in response to the outrage, the Cocke County Sheriff’s Office posted the following post: Labeled Cocky County Sheriff Office lh: “considering the amount of false and misleading information of the animals attacks, we ask that the public just listen to what law enforcement releases to the public. Individuals are making assumptions and non facts of this investigation and will not provide accurate information. These families need closure and respect. The investigation on both attacks is under a strong investigation and long hours are worked each day. The more we put out to the public could devastate the case. We will release as much as we can when feasible but we will not release anything that could jeopardize this case. The first case is not closed and was under an investigation and still ongoing. Autopsy results are not complete ad can only be released to next of kin. Once the case is resolved ad completed, then we will release all facts of the investigation to the public. As of now anyone that has any information that is relevant to either case is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 423-623-6004. Facebook and social media is not the contact place. We need a phone call or approach to our detective division. Thank you for your understanding and we hope to have these resolved as soon as possible. As law enforcement officers we must abide by all laws and case laws to work cases. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all families of the victims.” These posts were clearly not enough for the public who are demanding the dogs be found and put down. The following comments reflect the general outrage: Richard Buffalin on July 19, 2021 at 11:08 pm said: “This is a law enforcement failure of epic proportions.” This calls for individual enforcement of personal safety. Local governments refuse to provide for removal of dangerous animals. We see dangerous canines lunging at their fences and we hear them growling at passers by. At any instant, they can be loose on the public street. Local law is flagrantly opposed to the safety of the innocent citizen on the street.” Boni on July 19, 2021 at 11:11 pm said: “A trainer didn’t “train them that way” in all likelihood no matter what some pit cultist or anybody else wants to claim. It’s more likely he overestimated his ability to “train out” genetic aggression. He was also highly negligent in not euthanizing the dog/s immediately after the first attack. And the police negligence in this? This is beyond shocking. If I’m not mistaken there were three ‘Mauled to death by pitbull’ stories, just today. This is carnage on a massive scale. When you’re safer swimming in a shark tank or playing with massive cats and alligators in sanctuaries than hanging out with a dog–something is seriously amiss with that breed of dog.”