Couple Whose Dogs Killed Jogger In Court

A couple whose two dogs fatally mauled a jogger in the US state of Michigan have appeared in court charged with second-degree murder.

Bail for Sebastiano Quagliata, 45, and Valbona Lucaj, 44, was set at $500,000 in Friday's arraignment at Lapeer District Court.

It is not known if the couple, who are also accused of possessing a dangerous animal causing death, have the money to pay the bond and get out of jail.

They signed an agreement with prosecutors to have the animals euthanised.

The dogs were roaming free when they attacked 46-year-old Craig Sytsma on July 23 on a rural road in Metamora Township, about 45 miles (72km) northwest of Detroit.

The animals - cane corsos, an Italian mastiff-like dog bred to hunt wild boar - only stopped attacking Mr Sytsma when a neighbour opened fire with a .44 Magnum, grazing one of the beasts.

In a 911 call, a woman tells a police dispatcher: "When I got here, they were chewing on his arms … but it looks like they've got him all over … I think he's bleeding severely."

Mr Sytsma, a divorced father of three, was pronounced dead at hospital about an hour later.

The dogs' owners reportedly returned home after the attack.

Authorities said it was the third attack by Quagliata and Lucaj's dogs in the past two years.

The animals are in custody along with eight puppies. The puppies will be offered to an animal rescue group.

Lucaj, a native of Albania, and Quagliata, a native of Italy, were facing deportation at the time of the attack because they are in the US illegally, according to a report in the Detroit Free Press.

She has previously been named in bribery allegations involving an immigration official in New York, reports AP news agency, though she was not charged.

The couple are due back in court on August 8.