A man has been bailed after a grandmother was killed by two dogs at the weekend.
Esther Martin, 68, was attacked inside a house in Jaywick, Essex, on Saturday afternoon after reportedly trying to break up fighting puppies.
She had been visiting her 11-year-old grandson when the tragedy occurred, with neighbours describing “horrific” screaming.
A 39-year-old man who was arrested on suspicion of dangerous dog offences has been released on conditional bail until 5 March, Essex Police said on Monday.
He was known to the victim.
Ms Martin’s daughter Sonia Martin said the dogs were of the XL bully breed – which was banned at the start of this month – with a total of six puppies and two adult dogs in the property.
However, Acting Detective Superintendent Stuart Truss said investigators are working with experts to confirm the breed of the dogs.
He said: “We’re making good progress in our investigation into Esther’s death.
“It is an investigation with a number of complexities, but we are determined to give Esther’s family the answers they need.
Advertisement
“We are working with experts to confirm the breed of the dogs. This may take some days but it’s really important we get it right.
“I would ask people not to speculate about this element – we will establish the facts and we will keep the community in Jaywick updated.”
Image: The incident is being investigated. Pic: Essex Police
Ms Martin’s daughter told the BBC: “There were adult XL bully dogs in the property, and my mum had raised concerns to the owners about them being dangerous and quite aggressive.”
She said her mother, from Woodford Green in London, had been “getting her life back together” following the death of another daughter two years ago.
“It’s killed our mum and it’s killed our children’s grandmother. I’m getting married in a couple of years and my mum won’t be at that,” she added.
Chief Superintendent Glen Pavelin said both of the animals were “destroyed inside the house” after officers arrived at the scene.
He told reporters on Sunday: “Their unflinching bravery and professionalism ensured that there is no ongoing threat to the people of Essex as a result of this incident.
“I would also like to thank local people who tried to get into the house to help Esther Martin, you should be proud.”
Although the breed involved is yet to be established, the attack comes just days after the ban on XL bully-type dogs came into force after a spate of attacks in recent years.
It means it is now a criminal offence to own one of the animals in England and Wales without an exemption certificate.
Unregistered pets can be seized and owners fined and prosecuted.
People with dangerously out-of-control dogs can be jailed for up to 14 years and banned from owning animals, and their pets can be put down.
A 76-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of administering poison at a summer camp which led to eight children being taken to hospital, police said.
Police received reports of children feeling unwell at a summer camp in Canal Lane, Stathern, Leicestershire, on Monday.
Paramedics assessed eight children, who were taken to hospital as a precaution and have all now been discharged.
The suspect was arrested at the camp and remains in custody on suspicion of administering poison with intent to injure/aggrieve/annoy.
Detective Inspector Neil Holden said: “We understand the concern this incident will have caused to parents, guardians and the surrounding community.
“We are in contact with the parents and guardians of all children concerned.
“Please be reassured that we have several dedicated resources deployed and are working with partner agencies including children’s services to ensure full safeguarding is provided to the children involved.
More from UK
“We also remain at the scene to carry out enquiries into the circumstances of what has happened and to continue to provide advice and support in the area.
“This is a complex and sensitive investigation and we will continue to provide updates to both parents and guardians and the public as and when we can.”
The force said it has referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) over what it said was the “circumstances of the initial police response”.
There is no evidence that malign activity was responsible for yesterday’s outage of air traffic control systems, the transport secretary has said.
Heidi Alexander said she has spoken with the chief executive of National Air Traffic Service (NATS), Martin Rolfe, and added that what happened was an isolated incident.
NATS has apologised for the IT problems after thousands of passengers suffered extensive travel disruption during one of the busiest times of the year.
The technical glitch led to more than 150 flight cancellations, leaving airlines reacting furiously.
Image: Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander
Ms Alexander wrote on X: “I have spoken with NATS CEO Martin Rolfe who provided further detail on yesterday’s technical fault.
“This was an isolated event and there is no evidence of malign activity.
“I know that any disruption is frustrating for passengers.
“Flights are now resumed and I am grateful to airlines who are working hard to get people to where they need to be.
“I will continue to receive regular updates. Passengers should check with airlines before travelling.”
Officials said a “radar-related issue” caused the air traffic control failure.
A spokesperson for NATS said: “This was a radar-related issue which was resolved by quickly switching to the back-up system during which time we reduced traffic to ensure safety.
“There is no evidence that this was cyber related.”
The problem occurred at NATS’ control centre in Swanwick, Hampshire, and affected the vast majority of England and Wales.
Aviation analytics company Cirium said 84 departures and 71 arrivals were cancelled to or from UK airports up to 10pm on Wednesday, with several flights diverted to other European airports.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
5:06
Travel expert Paul Charles: This is a major outage
There was limited disruption on Thursday, with a handful of British Airways flights cancelled because aircraft and crew were out of position.
Heathrow and Gatwick airports said they had resumed normal operations.
Affected passengers are unlikely to be entitled to compensation as the disruption was outside of airlines’ control, but they will be able to claim expenses for a reasonable amount of food and drink, a means to communicate and overnight accommodation if required.
Image: Martin Rolfe in 2023. Pic: PA
Ryanair has called on Mr Rolfe to resign, claiming “no lessons have been learnt” since a similar systems outage in August 2023.
The airline’s chief operating officer Neal McMahon said: “It is outrageous that passengers are once again being hit with delays and disruption due to Martin Rolfe’s continued mismanagement of Nats.”
Airlines have reacted furiously after a technical glitch in air traffic control systems led to more than 150 flight cancellations.
The National Air Traffic Service (NATS) has apologised for the IT problems – and said systems were back up and running 20 minutes after the “radar-related issue” was detected at 4.05pm.
But with thousands of passengers suffering extensive travel disruption, during one of the busiest times of the year, airline executives have warned this isn’t good enough.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
1:01
Departures resume after ATC problem
Ryanair’s chief operating officer Neal McMahon has called for NATS chief executive Martin Rolfe to resign – and claimed Wednesday’s incident was “utterly unacceptable”.
He said: “It is outrageous that passengers are once again being hit with delays and disruption due to Martin Rolfe’s continued mismanagement of NATS.
“It is clear that no lessons have been learnt since the August 2023 NATS system outage, and passengers continue to suffer as a result of Martin Rolfe’s incompetence.”
Mr McMahon was referring to a glitch that affected more than 700,000 passengers two years ago – and said that, if Mr Rolfe refuses to step down, the government should intervene.
“Heidi Alexander must act without delay to remove Martin Rolfe and deliver urgent reform of NATS’ shambolic ATC service, so that airlines and passengers are no longer forced to endure these preventable delays caused by persistent NATS failures,” he added.
The Department for Transport says Ms Alexander does not have any direct control over NATS – and no powers over staffing decisions at the service.
Image: Martin Rolfe in 2023. Pic: PA
EasyJet’s chief operating officer David Morgan added: “It’s extremely disappointing to see an ATC failure once again causing disruption to our customers at this busy and important time of year for travel.
“While our priority today is supporting our customers, we will want to understand from NATS what steps they are taking to ensure issues don’t continue.”
NATS is yet to comment on the calls for Mr Rolfe’s resignation – but has stressed that the glitch is not believed to be “cyber related”.
“This was a radar-related issue which was resolved by quickly switching to the back-up system during which time we reduced traffic to ensure safety,” a spokesperson had said.
Departures at airports across the country have now resumed – but passengers are being urged to check with their airline before heading to terminals.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
5:06
Travel expert: This is a major outage
John Carr, from Stourbridge, was on his way from Heathrow to Norway to help arrange his brother’s wedding when he discovered his flight was cancelled after checking in.
“I’m pretty gutted,” he said. “We’ve got loads of stuff in the suitcases to set up the venue, because we’re obviously flying to Norway. We’ve got the wedding rehearsal to do. It’s quite stressful.”
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey called for an urgent investigation and also referred to the “utterly unacceptable” disruption two years earlier.
“With thousands of families preparing to go on a well-earned break, this just isn’t good enough. The public deserve to have full confidence in such a vital piece of national infrastructure.”
Follow The World
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
Airlines may have to provide compensation, although there are exemptions for “extraordinary circumstances”, according to the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority.