DETROIT -- A Detroit man died Thursday after he was bitten by a fighting pit bull on Mack Avenue and Lakepointe Street.

Police said a woman came out of her home when she saw a stray pit bull attacking her dogs.

When the woman tried to stop the attack, the pit bull started coming toward her.

Robert Howard came out of his house to help the woman, when the pit bull turned on him and bit him in the calf.

"The dog had tore into his calf and when he let go, he just snatched and pulled all the arteries out. He was lying on the steps, and when I checked his vital signs he was already dead then," said Howard's friend saiah Brown.

Police said the dog bit a main artery in Howard's leg and he later died of his injuries.

"I am upset, my baby's gone and I can’t get him back and I an done with this," said Howard's girlfriend Sheryl.

Police have the dog being attacked in custody, but they cannot find the pit bull.

An investigation is ongoing.