A two-year-old boy was killed by a group of dogs while visiting family in Colton, Calif. on Monday evening; the boy's grandmother and uncle have been arrested, according to NBC News.
Officers were called to the scene on Monday after receiving a report that a dog had killed a person; at the scene they found the 2-year-old with extensive injuries to his upper body. The child, Samuel Zamudio, was rushed to the hospital but was not able to be saved, according to KABC.
"It was ugly. His face was all eaten up," a neighbor who witnessed the incident told KABC. "He was eaten from the face. He had no clothes."
The boy's uncle, Marco Zamudio, and grandmother, Eustulia Zamudio, were looking after the boy when the accident happened. Family members though that the boy had gotten lost and were out searching for him around 5 p.m. Eustulia discovered the boy in the backyard around 5:30 p.m. and called 911, according to NBC News.
"For about 20 minutes, they couldn't find him until they peaked in the back and they saw him back there," Kevin Cardiel, a neighbor, told KABC. "He jumped out of the window, I'm guessing to play with the dogs, and the dogs grabbed him."
Five pit bull mixes that were at the residence were taken into custody by Animal Control although it is unclear how many of the dogs participated in the attack that killed the boy. Currently the animals are being held in quarantine at the San Bernadino City Animal Shelter, according to the San Bernadino Sun.
Both the uncle and the grandmother were being held by police on suspicion of child endangerment leading to death, according to NBC News.
"It's what we typically use when we have horrific child abuse cases," Colton police Detective Ray Mendez told the San Bernadino Sun about the charges brought against the boy's relatives.
