On Monday night, an Amazon delivery driver, around 50 years old, was found dead, in front of a house, presumably the victim of mauling by two dogs. 

Police were called to a home in Excelsior Springs, Missouri, after neighbors reported that an Amazon truck had been parked in the street for hours with the engine running. They said the windows were open and the lights were on, which was very unusual. 

When officers arrived, they found the driver dead on the front lawn, which was fenced in, next to two dogs. Ray County Sheriff Scott Childers said, “We can tell by looking at the victim’s body he had a ton of trauma that would be consistent with canine bites all over his body.” The driver had apparently entered the fenced-in yard and delivered the package, at which point he was mauled by the two dogs, a German Shepherd and a mastiff. 

When the officers approached, the dogs started growling and appeared ready to attack. When the officer tried to subdue the dogs, one of them became more aggressive and the officer had to shoot it. 

The wounded dog and the other dog both ran inside the house, and the deputies followed. Childers said he made the decision to follow the dogs, and when the dogs tried to attack them, the officers shot and killed both dogs. 

The Amazon driver was not identified, pending notification of his family.

Sheriff Childers said the owners of the dogs were away from home, but neglect was not suspected. 

The US Postal Service reports that 5,400 employees were attacked by dogs in 2021. 

The Missouri incident is the second fatal attack on a package delivery carrier since August. 

Five dogs maimed a Florida postal worker after her vehicle broke down.

The day after the attack, Amazon tweeted this statement to its employees: “We want to help ensure you aren’t surprised by our four-legged customers when on-route, so be sure to check the Amazon Delivery App for the paw print icon in the ‘delivery notes,’ indicating you should ‘be aware of a dog at this stop.’ If we know Fido is nearby, we’ll add the paw print to give you a heads-up.” 

Many social media users and Amazon workers were offended by the light-hearted tone of the Amazon tweet.