Pitbull Dogs Attack and Kill Upstate New York Man

Police are investigating a fatal dog attack in upstate New York after a pack of 9 adult mixed-breed Pitbull dogs mauled and killed a man Wednesday night.

According to the Albany Police Department (APD), the horrific scene unfolded Wednesday evening October 9th at approximately 5:55 p.m. when police were dispatched to the 500 block of Central Avenue in Albany, New York for a report of a man being attacked by numerous dogs.

Man Attacked by Pitbull Dogs

As officers responded to the scene they observed 9 mixed breed Pitbull dogs attacking a man in the backyard of a residence. To try and stop the attack one of the responding APD officers shot their duty weapon striking and killing one of the dogs. The gunshot did scare the other 8 dogs away therefore stopping the attack but sadly not soon enough.

Dogs Attack and Kill Man

Once the other dogs were collected by a caregiver officers were able to enter the backyard of the house on Central Avenue near Rawson Street and discovered that the male victim was deceased. The victim was later identified as 59-year-old James Provost of Schenectady, NY by Albany Police Chief Eric Hawkins at a Thursday press conference.

It is unclear why the victim was in the backyard at the time of the attack but police did say that the attack happened in the backyard next door to where the dogs lived therefore they need to determine how the dogs got from their yard to the yard next door where Provost was killed according to WTEN.

24 Pitbull Dogs Found

Chief Hawkins did say that in total there were 24 mixed breed Pitbull dogs located at the residence during the police investigation, 9 adults and 15 puppies between 5 & 8 weeks old. The surviving 23 dogs were taken in by the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society where they will be cared for until it's determined what should be done with them.

Will There Be Any Criminal Charges?

Hawkins told reporters at the press conference (above),

"We are working with the district attorney’s office to determine exactly what if any criminal charges are applicable here but certainly that’s a possibility."

Hawkins also said that this wasn't the first time APD had responded to this residence saying "Back in May, we did conduct a search warrant of that home due to drug activity. During that search warrant several dogs were confiscated."

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This is an active investigation and as more information is released we will update this article.