06/11/2013

4-Year-Old Girl Dies In Dog Attack

Leicestershire Police are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of a four-year-old girl in Mountsorrel.

At 12.14pm yesterday, Tuesday, police were called by the ambulance service to a flat in Rowena Court in Mountsorrel.

The report was in relation to a young child being injured after being attacked by a dog.

Officers attended and confirmed that Lexi Branson had been attacked by a dog in what is believed to be the lounge area of the home address.

Lexi was taken to the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham where she subsequently died.

The dog died of stab wounds shortly after the incident which were sustained whilst Lexi's mother tried to save her daughter.

Detective Superintendent David Sandall is overseeing the investigation, he said: "This is a very tragic incident and our thoughts are with the family and friends of Lexi at this extremely difficult time.

"The flat remains cordoned off to allow for a forensic examination and we are continuing to investigate the circumstances leading to the tragic death of Lexi and this will include the history of the dog.

"The dog is a bulldog which is not a breed listed under Section 1 of the Dangerous Dogs Act.

"The family have understandably been left devastated by the events of yesterday and have asked that they and their friends are not contacted by the media and we request that their wishes are respected at this difficult time."

(CD/JP)

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