September 21, 2016
UK Man Says Police Officer Sicced Dog On Him Because He's Gay
READ TIME: 2 MIN.
A man from Manchester, England says an officer hurled derogatory language at him before siccing his police dog to attack him because he's gay, the Manchester Evening News reports.
The gay man, 55, is remaining anonymous and says he was attacked by the police dog when he was walking through a cemetery with a friend around 3 a.m. on Aug. 31. The victim alleges the officer saw the two men and assumed they were "up to no good," calling the unknown man a "dirty bastard."
The handler then let his dog to attack the man for three minutes, according to the Manchester Evening News.
"All I can remember is this dog running towards me," the victim told the newspaper from the hospital. "At first I thought it was a pit bull but as it bit into my leg I realized it was a German Shepherd type."
He added: "An officer appeared and he had a torch or a camera with a light that he was shining on the dog. That's how I could see its teeth ripping into my leg.
"The handler pulled the dog off and when he saw my friend he thought we were up to no good. He said 'You dirty b*****d.'
"He set the dog onto me again. He didn't do anything to stop. It was like he was taking pleasure in seeing me attacked."
He said he is having "flashbacks" to the incident.
"I'll never be able to go near a police dog again," he told the Manchester Evening News. He said the officer was joined by at least two other officers about five minutes later and an ambulance was then called.
The man has been in the hospital for two weeks and suffered a number of lacerations to his legs.
"I'm furious about the entire situation," the man's brother told the newspaper. "Being attacked by a police dog is one thing. But being called a dirty b*****d and having a dog set on you because you're gay is another. That dog should not be being used by police and the dog handler should be suspended."
A police spokesman told the Manchester Evening News that he could not comment on the incident because the case was sent to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.
