Handsworth Crescent: 3 XL bully dogs seized in police raid on Sheffield property as officers remain in area

An investigation has been launched by police, after three American XL ‘bully’ bulldogs were seized from a Sheffield property yesterday.

The warrant was executed at a property in Handsworth Crescent, Darnall just after 5.30pm on Wednesday, September 13, 2023.

Confirming the investigation, a South Yorkshire Police spokesperson said this afternoon (Thursday, September 14, 2023): "Searches of the property are on-going and officers remain in the area. Three dogs, believed to be XL bullys have been seized."

Calls for the Government to ban XL bullys have been made this week, after an 11-year-old girl was bitten by an XL bully, crossed with a Staffordshire Terrier during an incident in Birmingham on Saturday (September 9, 2023). Two men who attempted to intervene were also injured in the attack.

In response to the incident, Home Secretary Suella Braverman said she is seeking 'urgent advice' on banning XL bully dogs.

Posting on social media, Ms Braverman said: "This is appalling. The American XL bully is a clear and lethal danger to our communities, particularly to children.

"We can't go on like this. I have commissioned urgent advice on banning them."

South Yorkshire Police chiefs have previously raised concerns about XL bully dogs, in the wake of a tragedy involving dogs at Masefield Road, Rotherham in July 2022, in which Joanne Robinson died after being mauled by an XL bully. Police found two dogs of the same breed at the house.

Although only one of the dogs was believed to be involved in the attack, both were ordered to be destroyed.

Speaking in June 2023, Assistant Chief Constable Dan Thorpe said: “XL Bully dogs account for 25 per cent of all of the dogs seized by South Yorkshire Police since January 2022 and that number is rapidly increasing.

“Each year we see significant increases in dangerous dog related incidents. In fact the number of incidents has more than doubled in the last five years. In 2018, we saw 77 of these incidents and have already seen 180 in the first six months of this year.”

“In the time it takes us to get there, any one of those incidents could easily result in serious injury or even death. We have already seen a fatality in South Yorkshire which has devastated the victim’s loved ones and the wider community.

“We can’t ignore the fact that the XL bully breed is disproportionately represented in the number of dog attacks we attend. Eighty (25 per cent) of the dogs seized since January 2022, by South Yorkshire Police are XL bullies. Last year, 89 dogs had to be destroyed by police in the immediacy of the incident in order to protect public safety.”