Evil and coldblooded: Animal welfare group horrified after boys set pit bull alight

A pit bull was set alight.

• Five boys burnt a pit bull to death in Hanover Park.
• Animal Welfare Society described the incident as evil and cold-blooded.
• A resident watched helplessly as the boys set the dog alight at the weekend.

The Animal Welfare Society (AWS) removed the charred remains of a female pit bull in Hanover Park, Cape Town, at the weekend, after the dog was set alight allegedly by five boys.

AWS spokesperson Allen Perrins said resident Fatima du Toit and her two grandchildren witnessed the boys setting the dog alight.

“No one should ever have to witness such horror and the ear-piercing screams of the dog crying out in pain will haunt them forever because of the inhuman cruelty these boys did to the animal,” said Perrins.

“What makes this crime particularly heinous is its coldblooded nature coupled with the fact that it was committed by children.”  

According to the organisation, the boys, aged between 10 and 13, cornered and deliberately set the dog alight. 

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Perrins said Du Toit desperately wanted to intervene and stop the boys but was too “shocked and petrified” of violent retribution.

“All she could do was watch in horror and shield her grandchildren from the nightmare unfolding before their eyes. When she finally plucked up the courage to confront the group they ran away cursing and laughing, leading her to suspect they were high on drugs,” Perrins added.

He said the woman was visibly shaken when she reported the incident to AWS.

Fatima du Toit and her grandson with AWS inspector who removed the charred animal.

Photo Supplied Supplied

What was also disturbing, Perrins said, was the number of bystanders who chose to reach for their phones and film the entire “horrendous, evil incident” rather than intervene and stop the perpetrators. 

“We collected the badly decomposed carcass and any other evidence we could gather at the scene,” Perrins said. 

He said Du Toit’s teary-eyed grandson, who kept a safe distance from the scene while holding his grandmother’s hand, told the AWS team the children were “evil”.

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“I don’t like it when my granny gets heartsore and I don’t like seeing her cry,” the boy added.

Perrins said this was one of the most gruesome incidents the organisation had seen in its more than a decade of existence.

“What we saw was absolutely shocking and disgusting. The amount of pain that the poor dog endured is unthinkable. We will do our damnedest to apprehend those responsible and hope that our intervention will help Fatima and her family find peace and closure,” Perrins said. 

AWS has pleaded with anyone who has information on the incident to contact them on 021 692 2626.

Western Cape police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg said Philippi police had no record of the incident.