Ian Price: Dog attack victim 'a pillar of the community'

A man who was killed by two dogs has been described as a "pillar of the community" by a close friend.

Ian Price, 52, died in hospital after being attacked by two suspected American bully XLs in Stonnall, near Walsall, Staffordshire, on Thursday.

His friend Rob Ellwood, said he loved walking his own dogs and Aston Villa.

A 30-year-old man, from the Lichfield area, arrested on suspicion of manslaughter has now been released on conditional bail.

In a tribute Mr Ellwood described the father-of-two as a "very early riser" and a keen golfer.

"His early morning walks around Stonnall were a huge part of his relaxation routine, where he would walk his two dogs along the many country footpaths surrounding our village, then later posting his rural adventures on Facebook whilst many of us were still in bed."

"It is of no surprise to all who knew Ian that his first love was his family", adding he was a devoted husband and father-of two, son and brother," Mr Ellwood said.

"He would often talk of their achievements and how incredibly proud he was of them," Mr Ellwood said.

A JustGiving page has been set up for Mr Price's family.

On it, Mr Ellwood said the victim's family had "thanked everybody for your support and help during this horrific time".

Mr Ellwood's friend was also an Aston Villa fan and "enjoyed both the beautiful game and also the banter that ensued".

"A pillar of the community, Ian will be sadly missed by all who knew him.

"He would have done anything for anyone, he was a patriot, a gentleman, a tradesman and a scholar."

Mr Ellwood said the Stonnall community were welcome to come to an open church service on Saturday until 15:00 BST to lay flowers and pay their respects.

On Friday, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged to ban American bully XL dogs.

The UK's chief veterinary officer said on Saturday there would not be a cull of American bully XLs as a result of new laws being introduced.

Staffordshire Police said the arrested man had been interviewed a number of times and had been released pending further inquiries.

The force added: "Our investigation continues at pace as we try to understand more about events leading up to this horrendous attack."

On Friday, the force said officers had spoken to the dog owner on two previous occasions after being called to incidents in the area.

He had initially been arrested on suspicion of being in charge of dogs dangerously out of control, causing injury.

Police previously said it was understood the dogs were bully XLs, but further tests were being carried out to determine their breeds.

One of the dogs died after being restrained and the other died after an injection was given by a vet, police said.

The attack happened in Main Street at about 15:15 BST on Thursday.

Members of the public tried to help Mr Price and attempted to get the dogs off him.

Meanwhile, children at nearby St Peter's Primary Academy were stopped from leaving school for several hours for safety reasons.

One of the dogs was captured outside, while the other was contained in the owner's flat.

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