Five American Bulldogs have been destroyed and a man has been arrested after a woman died following a dog attack.

The 63-year-old woman died at the scene of the attack in Liverpool on Monday night.

A Merseyside Police spokesman said a 31-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of owning a dog dangerously out of control and was in custody.

The spokesman added: “Five American bulldogs, which were inside the property, were handed over and have since been humanely destroyed.”

The woman has not yet been formally identified but her next of kin have been informed and a post-mortem will be carried out to establish the cause of death, the force said.

Detective Inspector Katie Coote said: “This is clearly a very distressing incident and our thoughts are with the family and friends of the lady who died.

“Our enquiries remain ongoing as we seek to establish what has happened and I would urge anyone who could assist our enquiries to get in touch.”