Footage shows moment police gun down two dogs and Taser man after tense stand off as Met insists animals posed threat
9 May 2023, 06:53 | Updated: 9 May 2023, 08:29
Met Police officers taser suspect and shoot two dogs in front of horrified spectators
Footage shows the moment police officers taser a man and shoot his dog after a tense stand-off in London.
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Officers are shown holding off a man who shouts and pleads at them as he holds the two animals by a canal in Tower Hamlets.
The dogs bark during the confrontation before one is shot dead by an officer.
Police then Taser the man as another officer tries to grab the other dog.
As residents from surrounding flats watch on from balconies, many shouting at the police, an officer shoots the second dog while colleagues detain the man.
The Met said the animals were "destroyed" because they posed a "significant threat to police officers".
In one clip, a distressed witness can be heard shouting "why would you shoot the dog?"
The Met said the incident is being reviewed by its Directorate of Professional Standards.
In a statement released as footage from various social media users was posted online, the Met said officers were called to a woman being attacked by a dog at about 5pm on Sunday.
They were dispatched to Commercial Road "where the aggressive behaviour of two dogs was of considerable concern and posed a significant threat to them".
"A man was arrested in connection with the incident for having a dog dangerously out of control and assault offences," the statement went on.
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"He has been taken into police custody. A Taser was discharged by police.
"No person was taken to hospital. Both dogs were destroyed by police at the scene.
"This is never an easy decision for any officer to take, but police have a duty to act where necessary before any further injury is caused."
A woman who saw the shooting told The Mirror: "It didn't seem proportionate. It is beyond belief.
"It was so shocking. I didn't realise it was a proper gun until the dogs were just lying completely out on the ground. There was blood coming out of them.
"I've never seen anything like that. You hear of these things happening in America but not here. Whatever had happened, it's not an excuse for it to end like that.
"Some of the other neighbours were shouting 'it's disgusting' and 'we're not in America'."
