A dog attack in New Jersey left one 13-year-old boy injured and another dead, officials say, according to multiple sources.
A 115-pound bull mastiff named "Trigger" is said to have broken free of its fence and attacked the boys Friday afternoon in the city of Paterson, N.J., authorities said. The body of the boy who died was found along a nearby creek around 11:30 p.m.
A neighborhood couple out for a walk Friday afternoon found the injured boy, who was scared and bleeding from a puncture wound in his hand, the NY Post reports.
The dog was later stabbed multiple times by its owner, who was identified by The Post as Paul Clarke, before being euthanized by animal control. Clarke had also been wounded by the canine, reports said.
Trigger was "friendly in the beginning" until neighborhood kids began provoking the animal, a neighbor told The Bergen Record.
An autopsy is being conducted on the dead teen, whose exact cause of death is currently unknown. No criminal charges have been filed. Trigger's remains are being examined for diseases like rabies.
Even authorities appeared to be shocked by the attack. "In 37 years this is the worst that I've seen," Paterson animal control officer John DeCando said. "A child is dead. I can't comprehend that."