Boy sentenced after machete attack on Birmingham police dog

Stark's handler feared the dog would be killed, a court has heard

A 17-year-old boy who hit a police dog more than 20 times over the head with a machete has been sentenced to a detention order.

Police investigated reports of a break-in at allotments in Handsworth, Birmingham, on 14 November.

Despite being told to put a weapon down, the boy "continued to swing the machete wildly", a prosecutor has said.

The teenager was given an eight-month detention training order at Birmingham Magistrates' Court on Friday.

The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has admitted causing unnecessary suffering to three-year-old Stark and possessing a machete in a public place.

Birmingham Youth Court has heard the handler, PC Paul Hopley, feared the animal would be killed.

Prosecutor Angela Hallam said the dog - a German shepherd and Belgian malinois cross - was injured after the accused ran from the scene and continued to run even when PC Hopley identified himself as a police officer.