A HOMELESS MAN WAS ALMOST KILLED BY A PIT BULL ON TILL AN OFFICER SAVED HIM BY SHOOTING THE DOG IN THE HEAD

A homeless man was nearly mauled to death by an unleashed pit bull in Brooklyn and was only saved when a nearby corrections officer stopped the attack by shooting the dog in the head.

The female pit bull, which was owned by another homeless man in the area, sank his teeth into his victim on Herkimer Place in Bedford-Stuyvesant and would not let go, according to witnesses.

Anthony Davis, who works at the Brooklyn House of Detention, was off-duty but ran over to help the man – identified only as Bemo - when he saw what was happening at around 1.20pm yesterday.

‘He was bleeding a lot and screaming,’ Davis – who has spent a decade with the Correction Department - told the New York Post.

‘I tried to get him off the guy by pushing the dog and kicking him, but he wouldn’t let go.’
But after trying to fight the dog off for around a minute, Davis used his own 9mm pistol, which he was legally carrying, to put a bullet in the pit bull’s head.

And even after being fatally shot, it took a while before the dog released its victim.

The 50-year-old added: ‘I’ve had dogs since I was a kid - I had to make a decision to save that man’s life.’

The victim was taken to New York Methodist Hospital after suffering bites to his arm and leg.

Meanwhile, Davis was treated for trauma in another hospital in the area.

The pit bull's owner (left) shakes the hand of the off-duty corrections officer Anthony Davis (right)

 A witness told DNAinfo.com that the victim had been walking with the pit bull's owner when the attack occurred.

He added that the corrections officer had no choice but to shoot, adding the victim had been screaming for help.