The owner of the dog whose pit bull killed an 86-year-old man was fined $18,000 and banned from owning animals.

A Calgary man has been fined $18,000 and banned from keeping animals for 15 years after three pit bulls killed an 86-year-old woman two years ago.

Judge Gordon Wong, who handed down the verdict on Monday, said: “What happened is as bad as a dog attack on a human being.”

In February, Denis Bagarich pleaded guilty to statutory offenses for allowing an animal to attack and injure a person and allowing dogs to run free.

On June 5, 2022, Betty Ann Williams, nicknamed “Rusty” while serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force, was gardening in her back alley in the northwest community of Capitol Hill.

That afternoon, Bagarich's three American Staffordshire terriers – Bossy, Cinnamon and Smokey – escaped from their yard.

In making his ruling, Wong said a witness – another neighbor – heard cries for help and found three dogs attacking Williams' head and neck.

At that time, Bagarich grabbed two dogs and tried to enter his yard again.

All three dogs were confiscated after the incident.

During the trial, Bagarich testified only that Smokey participated in the attack and consented to the dog's euthanasia.

The fate of the other two dogs has not yet been determined.

However, Wong concluded that Cinnamon and Bossii were involved in the attack.

“All three surrounded Ms Williams until she called for help, making it difficult for her to escape the situation.”

Although the judge did not order the euthanization of the other two dogs — separate lawsuits are pending to determine their fate — he agreed to a 15-year ban on owning the animals proposed by prosecutor Ben Leung.

“It is irresponsible not to take any action to euthanize all three at once. He is putting his own desires before the safety of society,” the judge said.

Rabi Ahmed, defending, said his client was a responsible pet owner and argued the ban would be unnecessary and punitive.

Bagarich and his partner Talyn Calkins were initially charged with dozens of charges under the law. As part of the plea, all charges against Calkins were dropped, with Bagaric pleading guilty to two of the 12 felonies.