NEW BEDFORD, MASS. (WHDH) - No criminal charges will be filed in connection with the dog mauling death of a 14-year-old Rehoboth boy in Dighton earlier this year, officials announced Friday.
Dighton police officers responding to a report of a dead person at 2577 Maple Swamp Road about 8 p.m. spoke with a neighbor who found Ryan Hazel dead, according to the Bristol District Attorney’s Office.
The owner of the property, Scott Dunmore, who was in Boston at the time, returned home when he was contacted by police. He told investigators that Hazel was caring for the dogs when he was attacked.
On May 14, Dunmore, through a waiver, waived his right to a hearing on the euthanization of the five dogs. They were all put down on May 23.
In the conclusion section of a report issued Friday, Bristol District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III wrote, “There is no evidence of foul play in this case. The owner of the dogs was cooperative throughout the investigation. There is no basis for criminal charges to issue in this case. The was sadly a terrible tragedy.”
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