A pet dog which mauled its owner to death in front of a BBC crew could have been high on crack cocaine, an inquest has heard.
The dog owner died after his Staffordshire bull terrier attacked him – reportedly while he was being filmed for a BBC documentary.
The man named as 41 years old UK Cypriot Mario Perivoitos was bitten at an address in Wood Green, north London, late on March 20 and died in the early hours the following day.
At the time a post-mortem examination concluded that the 41-year-old suffered “hypovolemic shock and damage to the airway consistent with a dog bite”.
A BBC film crew are reported to have been present during the incident, which is thought to have taken place while the man was being interviewed for a documentary.
A veterinary toxicologist told an inquest at north London coroner’s court that test results showed high levels of cocaine and morphine in the dog’s urine.
Mario used to live with his Cypriot mother who is now in a care home.
He was handed a three month Closure Order at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court preventing him bringing anyone else back to the flat.
A copy of the order, which the police applied for, remained taped to his front door.
The order was made to prevent “the behaviour, nuisance or disorder from continuing, recurring or occurring”.
And it prohibited access to the property for anyone but Mario between February 22 and May 21.
