Amateur rapper whose XL bully killed his mother-in-law jailed for 10 years

A man has been jailed for 10 years and three months after his XL bully dog mauled his mother-in-law to death.

The pet, named Bear, killed Esther Martin, while she was at Ashley Warren's home in Jaywick, Essex, on 3 February 2024.

The 68-year-old was looking after two adult dogs, eight puppies and a child while Warren, an amateur rapper, was filming a music video in London.

The court heard Bear had not been walked in the four weeks before the attack.

"I am sure that you could and should have reasonably foreseen the risk," said Mr Justice Jeremy Johnson.

"As well as knowing it was prohibited, you knew it had been pent up in the house for weeks, you knew it was capable of being aggressive and you knew Esther Martin could not control it."

Johnson also banned Warren from owning a dog indefinitely.

Martin, a grandmother, had travelled from Woodford Green in east London to Warren's house.

Her daughter Clare had been in a relationship with Warren for 14 years before she died suddenly in 2021.

Martin was 5ft 3in (1.6m) tall and had restricted movement due to a hip replacement, arthritis and a limp.

Johnson said the puppies "may have started fighting" and jurors had already been told Martin used a broom to try to break them up.

"The two adult dogs responded by attacking her. She was mauled to death," the judge said.

Evidence suggested Warren was aware of the dogs' strength.

He chased Bear outside after the dog escaped from the house on 31 January 2024, and CCTV footage showed him struggling to hold him.

Police also visited Warren a week before the attack, where he lied, saying he already had exemption paperwork for Bear, purchased on Gumtree.

Bear and Beauty were put down at the scene after police arrived, and the puppies were later destroyed.

Warren was told about the attack at 15:37 on 3 February, and when he arrived at Clacton railway station, he was arrested.

They found him not guilty in relation to the second adult dog, Beauty, on the basis that she was owned by his girlfriend.

He was also convicted of possessing a knife, which police found upon arrest.

Martin's family clapped and hugged after the sentencing was passed. Someone else from the public gallery cried "yes".

In a victim impact statement, Sonia Martin-Coppen, Esther Martin's daughter, sobbed: "[The] last conversation I had with her was about setting a date for my wedding… I've missed out on my mum seeing me in my wedding dress."

In a joint statement read outside Chelmsford police station, Martin-Coppen and sister Kelly Fretwell said: "[The sentence] is validation of the pain we have endured and a step towards protecting other families from the same nightmare."

Det Ch Insp Louise Metcalfe, from Essex Police, said it was a "challenging and complex" investigation, noting it was "the first of its kind" after the legislation change.