According to reports, Bethany Lynn Stephens had gone out for a walk with her dogs when they attacked her. Police said the 22-year-old suffered horrific head and throat injuries.
Emergency services were called at about 8pm on Thursday by Bethany's dad after she hadn’t returned from walking the dogs.
He went looking around the area where he found his daughter's body. Local news station WTVR reported that he found her dogs in the woods, appearing to be ‘guarding’ Bethany’s body.
Sheriff’s deputies arrived and spent around an hour to 90 minutes trying to catch the pit bulls, before Bethany’s body was taken to the Medical Examiner’s Office.
An initial report from the MEO indicated that the dogs were behind the killing.
‘It appeared the attack was a violent attack initiated by the victims’ dogs while the victim was out for a walk with the dogs,’ Sheriff Agnew said.
‘The victim had defensive wounds on her hands and arms trying to keep the dogs away from her, which would be consistent with being attacked while she was still alive.’
Agnew added that he didn’t know the dogs’ history, but that they were ‘big, strong, powerful dogs’ that ‘you would suspect were bred for fighting, just in looking at them’.
He has ruled out murder at this stage.
The dogs are now being held by Goochland Animal Control, and the sheriff’s office will now order them to be put down. ‘In my 40 years of law enforcement I’ve never seen anything like it,’ Agnew said.
‘I hope I never see anything like it again.’
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