By Sophia Chang
Yoseph Noori, who lives in Astoria and is a first-grader at PS 122, was playing outside of his sister Toor Noori's home on 203rd Street when he was bitten by a white Akita-mix dog that had escaped from a neighbor's yard a few houses away, police said.It was not likely that Yoseph had provoked the dog, police said. The little boy suffered a deep laceration on his left cheek and a partially severed left ear. He was taken to New York Hospital Queens in Flushing in stable condition. Family members said his stitches were too numerous to count.The dog was taken away by the Department of Health's Center for Animal Control and Care, where it was determined to be aggressive in nature and posed a possible threat to the public after causing serious injury to the young boy, according to a Department of Health spokesman. “With the consent of the owner, the dog was humanely euthanized. It will now be tested for rabies,” the spokesman said.The alleged owner of the dog, Hyun Oh of 58-03 203rd St., lives just a few houses away from Toor Noori's residence and was not at home at the time of the incident Sunday afternoon around 1:30 pm, police said.After police left notice on his door, Oh came to the 111th Precinct where he was issued three criminal court summonses for having an unleashed dog, dog nuisance, and not registering his pet, police said. The summonses may result in a financial penalty, police said. Calls placed to Oh's home were not returned.Reached at her family's Astoria home Tuesday, Toor Noori said she had not seen the dog before Sunday's attack. She said her little brother was recuperating and looking forward to celebrating his seventh birthday in a few days.Reach reporter Sophia Chang by e-mail at news@timesledger.com, or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 146.
