Police dog shot dead by armed officers after biting his handler ‘had previously attacked a woman leaving her seriously injured’

• PD Jax, a cross-breed, was shot dead after biting his handler earlier this month
• Another woman has claimed she received similar injuries from the dog in 2019

A police dog, which was shot dead by armed cops after mauling a female police officer, had previously attacked before – leaving an innocent woman seriously injured, it has been claimed.

PD Jax, a Belgian Malinois crossed with a Dutch Herder, was shot dead by firearms officers after he became ‘aggressive’ and savagely bit his handler earlier this month.

PC Sarah Sapey, 42, who was PJ Jax’s handler, suffered an upper leg wound after the attack during a missing person’s hunt in Walton-le-Dale, Lancashire on August 3.

But solicitors representing another woman say their client received very similar injuries from the dog after he attacked her at the scene of a car crash in 2019.

Her solicitor James McNally said the dog had failed to obey handlers when it was let off its leash and ‘attacked her without warning’ while she was completely still.

PC Sarah Sapey, 42, who was PJ Jax’s handler, suffered a leg wound after PD Jax became ‘aggressive’ and savagely bit her (Pictured: PC Sarah Sapey with a dog that is not PD Jax)

PD Jax, a Belgian Malinois crossed with a Dutch Herder, was PD Jax was six years old when he was shot dead by firearms officers following the incident in the village of Walton-le-Dale, Lancashire

He said the woman spent five nights in hospital and had two operations after the incident, while also being left with ‘permanent scars’ and ‘psychological injuries’.

Mr McNally said he’d made attempts to settle the case on behalf of his client but Lancashire Police had refused until just hours after PD Jax was shot dead last week.

He said: ‘My client sustained serious injuries to her upper leg.

‘She was taken to hospital by ambulance and underwent surgery and then had another operation two days later.

‘She was in hospital for five nights and was left with permanent scars and psychological injuries.

‘On the day Jax was shot, my client made me aware of the news and I emailed the police asking for confirmation this was the same dog and asking for disclosure relating to the incident.

‘That was at 2pm. At 8pm the police emailed accepting the offer to settle we’d made weeks ago. My client was bitten in October 2019.

‘Just hours after PD Jax was killed the police settled her claim.’

Solicitor James McNally said the dog had failed to obey handlers when it was let off its leash and attacked his client ‘without warning’ while she was completely still

Jax was known for his confrontational personality and was nicknamed ‘Jax the Maligator’ by officers at Lancashire Police, sources have claimed

He added: ‘It was the outcome my client deserved but not in the way that any one of us would have wanted.’

Mr McNally said his unnamed female client had been attacked by PD Jax after the car she was in struck a pylon while travelling through the countryside.

He said the woman had been with her boyfriend, and after the crash, they had made their way across a field to a friend’s home to try and get help.

But Mr McNally claimed when police arrived at the scene, they released PD Jax off his leash and the dog failed to respond to its handler before it attacked her.

He said: ‘My client always maintained that PD Jax attacked her without warning, when she was completely still and that PD Jax refused to obey commands to release.

‘She always said that neither she or her boyfriend knew it was a police dog that was attacking her until after the event. My client was never charged with any crime.’

‘The police did, however, try and unsuccessfully prosecute her boyfriend with ‘causing unnecessary suffering to an animal’ for his attempts to try and get PD Jax to let go of my client.

‘Her boyfriend was acquitted. The police denied any responsibility. In their view, PD Jax was properly trained, posed no risk to anyone and was properly deployed.

‘They claimed my client added to the problem because she was covering Jax’s nose with her hand in an attempt to push him off whilst screaming and writhing around on the floor.’

PC Sapey, 42, had been looking after the dog since he was a puppy and kept him at her home along with a Cocker Spaniel called Pippa, according to her neighbours

Lancashire Police has in the past described Jax as ‘very affectionate with his handler’ and added he could be seen ‘sitting on her knee and wanting cuddles’

Mr McNally said that his client had instructed him to press ahead with court proceedings and that these had been issued against the police in February this year.

And alongside this, they had also made an offer to settle their claim outside of a trial.

But this had been denied by police until the day of PD Jax death on August 3.

He said: ‘All police dogs have a bite history which records all previous bites. As part of our investigations, I have seen PD Jax’s bite history.

‘I have seen his training records. I have discussed them in detail with a former police dog trainer and expert witness.

‘We had enough concerns regarding issues with his training and previous incidences that court proceedings against the police were issued and served in February.’

Mr McNally said the injuries that members of the public received from trained police dogs could be ‘horrific’, adding his client’s suffering had demanded compensation.

He said: ‘I suspect there’s an awful lot of bad behaviour you can excuse when you’ve spent hundreds of hours and thousands of pounds on creating your police dog.

‘But the injuries caused by police dogs are horrific. Alsatians, German Shepherds, Malinois are all big powerful dogs with big powerful jaws.

READ MORE: Police officer, 42, bitten by her force dog Jax when it went berserk before it was shot dead as it’s revealed she is still in hospital with serious leg injuries 

‘There seems to be a view that the end justifies the means. That if you chose to run (or in the case of my client, sit absolutely still) you deserve everything you get.

‘But when I’m looking at a photo of a woman with her calf muscle missing, I do wonder.

He went on: ‘Police dog handlers will talk of their bond with the dog but when a police dog is seen as a pet, as a loved one, as a member of the family rather than as a policing tool – for me it becomes a problem.

‘Like all dog owners you will always seek to excuse behavior, ignore warning signs, forgive and look the other way.

‘The problem is compounded when you consider the time, effort and money that has been spent on training these dogs.’

Jax was known for his confrontational personality and was nicknamed ‘Jax the Maligator’ by officers at Lancashire Police, sources have claimed. 

PC Sapey, 42, had been looking after him since he was a puppy and kept him at her home along with a Cocker Spaniel called Pippa, according to her neighbours. 

Last year, PD Jax also caught a driver hiding in bushes, who was then arrested for dangerous driving and drug driving without insurance, and helped track a vulnerable woman in her 20s who went missing in a mountain range.

Lancashire Police has in the past described Jax as ‘very affectionate with his handler’ and added he could be seen ‘sitting on her knee and wanting cuddles’ 

Tributes poured in following his death, with The Thin Blue Paw Foundation tweeting: ‘We’re deeply sad to learn of the tragic incident which resulted in PD Jax from Lancashire Police being shot at the scene by armed officers.’ 

The MailOnline has approached Lancashire Police for comment.

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