A pregnant woman has been killed by dogs in a forest in northern France where a hunt with hounds was taking place, investigators have said. The body of Elisa Pilarski, 29, who was walking her own dogs, was discovered near the town of Villers-Cotterêts.

She died after “several dog bites to the upper and lower limbs and the head,” prosecutor Frédéric Trinh said. Police said they were carrying out tests on 93 dogs and that they had opened a manslaughter investigation. The tests, comparing fresh DNA samples with those taken from Ms Pilarski, will try to establish which animals were responsible for the attack and who they belonged to.

Five dogs belonging to Ms Pilarski, who was reportedly six months pregnant at the time of her death, were among those being tested. A post mortem examination showed that the victim had suffered dog bites to the head, torso and arms, causing a severe haemorrhage and massive blood loss.(BBC)…[+]