6-Year-Old Sees Pit Bull ‘Chewing’ Father’s Face, Rescued After Using Facebook Messenger

A six-year-old girl witnessed a pit bull chomping away at her father’s face for nearly 24 hours, before being finally rescued from the ordeal. However, her dad was pronounced dead when police arrived at the scene.

In the incident that took place at a house on Oleander Drive, Mt. Morris Township, Michigan on Thursday, a 40-year-old man and his 36-year-old wife lay unconscious on the mattress due to a suspected drug overdose. The incapacitated pair was discovered by the man’s young daughter after she woke up around 8 a.m. EST, ABC12 reported.

The child later told the police that she tried reviving her father as well as her stepmother by throwing water on them but neither woke up. At some point during the day, a pit bull who was in the house, bit the girl’s father on the face and continued to gnaw at it.

Finally the six-year-old took pictures of the unconscious couple and sent them to her grandparents in Tennessee using Facebook Messenger. On seeing the pictures, her grandparents immediately alerted the Ingham County authorities, who referred the incident to Genesee County 911 Communications Center.

Mt. Morris Township Police Chief Terence Green said when officers arrived at the scene, they pronounced the 40-year-old dead, although it was not immediately clear if he died of overdose or due to dog bite. He added that there was a lack of physical trauma to the couple, which suggested that both had overdosed.

According to The Sun, officers heard the young girl screaming from inside the house when they approached the scene and upon entering the property found that “the dog was chewing on someone's face." The girl, who had nothing to eat for nearly a day, was rescued and handed over to her biological mother.

Green further said that since it was difficult to pinpoint exactly when the couple was incapacitated, there was no way of knowing for how long the child had been left to fend for herself. “This is tragic. It could've been a lot worse, but it's tragic," he said. "To think about a six-year-old being in the house alone longer than 24 hours, hasn't eaten, doesn't know what's going on. And at some point in time, she witnesses her father -- you know the dog causing damage to her deceased father, terrible. "

“She didn't ask to be put in this situation," he said. "Thank God she was smart enough and had the intelligence to get on that phone and try to contact someone. This six-year-old went through a traumatic event — and she saved a life."

While investigation into the incident is conducted by Genesee County Medical Examiner's Office, the unconscious woman was admitted to a nearby hospital where her condition was stable but she continued to stay in intensive care unit. She refused to cooperate with authorities regarding the case. Meanwhile, the police said they were talking to relatives and neighbors of the deceased man, to establish a timeline of events.

Terell Mile, a neighbor, said that such incidents were not common in the locality. “That's scary for that child," he said. "I feel bad for her. All we do is pray.”