Police unveil K-9 memorial

BY NATHAN CUSHING

UPDATE #1 — MAY 1, 2013; 1:59 PM

The recent death of a police K-9 inspired a local man to create a memorial, unveiled Wednesday morning, honoring deceased K-9s from across the region.

After hearing about the death of Richmond Police K-9 named Koda (see below), David Booth, owner of Richmond-based Booth Memorial, used his business to create a memorial stone. Engraved on it are the names of each known deceased K-9 that’s served with Richmond, Henrico, and Hanover police departments since 1957. The stone weighs approximately 2,700 lbs. and is roughly 4’2″ tall.

“It’s important that these dogs be remembered for their service and the challenging job that they dedicated their life to doing,” Booth said.

The memorial was unveiled this morning during a ceremony at the Richmond Police K-9 facility at 814 Forest Lawn Drive. photos courtesy of Richmond Police

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ORIGINAL — JULY 10, 2012

A Richmond Police K-9 is dead after suffering from a terminal illness only recently diagnosed. Koda, a six-year-old German Shepherd, was in distress and discomfort Saturday and immediately taken for emergency veterinary care. Veterinarians discovered Koda suffered from an undisclosed terminal illness. He was euthanized.

“Koda loved to work. He loved tracking, he was excited about his job and he loved catching bad guys,” said K-9 officer Montague Agee, Koda’s partner. “There was nothing more important to him than to find something or catch that suspect and get his toy as a reward. His favorite toy was a purple octopus that squeaked. It’s funny because he’s supposed to be this ‘vicious’ dog and yet the best thing in the world to him was to run around with this purple octopus that squeaked.” Officer Agee and Koda graduated together from patrol school in December 2007 and had been partners since. Koda made 55 suspect apprehensions and located approximately 25 pieces of evidence during his career. He was specifically trained to find firearms, shell casings, and bullets.

Koda and his purple toy

“Koda and Officer Agee are reflective of the high quality of our K-9 Unit,” Police chief Bryan T. Norwood said. “We will miss the team of Officer Agee and K-9 Koda and their dedication to the K-9 Unit, Richmond Police Department, the City of Richmond and to the law enforcement community.”

Richmond Police will formally recognize Koda during the Department’s Salute to Excellence Awards on August 9th. Anyone wishing to send cards, donations or learn more about the K-9 Unit may do so via the Friends of the Richmond K-9 Unit at P.O. Box 25495, Richmond, VA 23260; K-9 Sgt. Michael Bohannon at Michael.Bohannon@richmondgov.com; or K-9 Officer Monty Agee at Montague.Agee@richmondgov.com.

Officer Agee and Koda

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http://rvanews.com/news/k-9-dies-after-serving-with-richmond-police-for-nearly-5-years/62590

The Conroe Police Department plans to add a K-9 unit and might bring on a second one with the help of VFW Post 4709 in Conroe.

The post, along with the Conroe Police Officers Association, will host the fundraiser at noon Saturday in hopes of raising money for the second dog and possibly a vehicle. The Police Department has committed to funding one K-9 officer and vehicle.

Former K-9 officer Cassie was a narcotics dog and retired about eight months ago, said Conroe Police Sgt. Mark Walls, a member of the Conroe Police Officers Association.

“That left us without a K-9,” he said. “I spoke with the chief about it and (the department) is on board with getting a couple of K-9s.”

The Police Department already has one vehicle equipped to handle a K-9 unit, as well as the funding to purchase and train the dog.

However, a second unit would require another vehicle at a price tag of around $55,000, plus the expense of purchasing and training the dog (around $12,000 to $14,000).

While the department has funds, there are also other priorities that need to be addressed with the money, according to the Police Department.

Walls said having a second unit would help spread the workload.

“If we just have one dog, it is a strain on the officer to be available 24/7,” he said. “With two, we have much better coverage.”

Gary Bridges, post commander for the VFW Post 4709, said several of the post’s members are police officers and the organization is happy to help.

“Having a police department the size of Conroe and a city the size of Conroe that doesn’t have a K-9 unit at all is really bad.” Bridges said. “(K-9s) are very useful.”

Bridges said he is confident the fundraiser will be successful. In the past, the VFW has raised up to $40,000 during one event. He donated the use of the facilities, located at 1303 W. Semands, while local grocery stores have donated the food and other items. Barbecue plates will be $8, and there will be raffles, a cake walk, a live auction and a silent auction.

“I think we are going to have a big day,” he said. “People are very generous.”

Wall said he is happy to have the help of the VFW and the funds would help get the department the dogs that could specialize in different areas, such as tracking and holding or narcotics.

A K-9, he said, would be beneficial in tracking missing children or elderly, as well as tracking more dangerous suspects. In addition, a K-9 officer would be key in detecting narcotics during traffic stops.

“If we have reasonable suspicion that a subject may have drugs in the car but won’t give us consent to search, we can use the dog to run around the vehicle and if the dog alerts on the car, it gives us probable cause to enter the car and search the vehicle for drugs,” he said.

The process to get the dogs on board and on duty will take several months, Walls said. The dogs and the handler must both go through training together and kennels for the dogs have to be built at the handler’s home.

“It’s a process,” he said. “It won’t be overnight. We want this to be a successful program, we want it to work and we want it to work properly.”

​http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/courier/news/fundraiser-to-purchase-new-police-k–unit/article_f63f3682-83b8-530e-961c-110a7ab8ed2c.html

Ully was Officer Brian Adams’ partner from August 2001 through December 2007.

“During his tour, K9 Ully was responsible for the apprehension of over a 100 criminals, including burglars, robbers and kidnappers,” said police spokeswoman Stephanie Slater in a statement. “Those who knew K-9 Ully knew him as a warrior and a hunter of those who preyed on the innocent and fled from justice. He will be missed and remembered for his dedication to the BBPD.”

In October 2004 Ully led officers to one of three men suspected of stealing a woman’s purse from an outdoor table at the Boynton Ale House. Ervin Neal, 22, Patrick Evans, 24, and Ernest Neal, 19, led police on a chase in a stolen blue Chevrolet Impala after allegedly grabbing the woman’s purse.

All three West Palm Beach men bailed out of the vehicle. Ervin Neal and Evans were caught by Lake Worth and Boynton officers. Ully led officers to Ernest Neal, who was hiding in bushes.

In June 2003 Ully caught a man who police say used a handgun to rob two women of their cash and then fled the scene in their vehicle. Jesus Ruiz, 18, was chased by four police agencies, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s helicopter, and the U.S. Coast Guard. In the end, it was Ully who found Ruiz at the Four Seasons Resort on Palm Beach.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/news/crime-law/retired-boynton-police-dog-ully-dies/nXd8h/

Roseville police officer John Jorgensen used to joke that his K-9 partner was indestructible.

As a 2-year-old, Major developed bloat, an often fatal condition that causes a dog’s stomach to fill with gas. He had pots broken over his head. Suspects punched and kicked him.

On one police call, Jorgensen said, Major nearly drowned chasing a man in to a lake.

On Nov. 12, 2010, he proved his grit again when a man involved in a Maplewood burglary repeatedly stabbed the dog with a butterfly knife.

The assault left Major paralyzed in his hind legs and forced his retirement from the police department, but it didn’t kill him.

Two and half years later and in deteriorating health, Major was euthanized at the University of Minnesota Veterinary Medical Center at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 30. He was 11 years old.

Using a wheeled sling to preserve mobility, he lived out his retirement with Jorgensen and his family.

“He was a tough dog. … He caught a lot of bad guys and made a strong name for himself and I was lucky and honored to have him as a partner,” Jorgensen said. “I miss him terribly, but I think he is in a better spot. He is probably chasing down bad guys on four good legs now.”

In his final days, Major had started to develop pneumonia and was going on his third bladder infection in three months.

“I promised myself and I promised him that we would make that decision if his quality of life deteriorated to the point where he was too weak and The old partners spent Major’s last day driving around to spots they’d patrolled together during Major’s eight years with Roseville police. For his final meal, he was given cheeseburgers from McDonald’s and ice cream from Dairy Queen.

he didn’t have the same happiness,” Jorgensen said of the choice to put Major down. “It was just time.”

The man who assaulted Major, Roel Joseph Perez Jr., was sentenced in February 2011 to 120 days in jail, but ended up serving a year after he violated the terms of his probation, Jorgensen said.

The Roseville police officer pushed for harsher penalties for those convicted of assaulting police dogs after the attack on Major.

In 2011, Gov. Mark Dayton signed new legislation that makes any assault resulting in substantial bodily harm to a police K9 a felony.

Major’s death is a blow to the entire Roseville Police Department, said Lt. Lorne Rosand.

“They were great crime fighters,” Rosand said of the work Jorgensen and Major did for the department. “They did a lot of wonderful things for our agency and for the citizens of Roseville.”

Jorgensen has been working with a new police K9, Otis, for the past year.

“I always say if Otis ends up being half the police dog Major was, he will be phenomenal,” Jorgensen said. “He was truly a handler’s dream.”

​http://www.twincities.com/crime/ci_23151743/roseville-k9-officer-major-euthanized-2-1-2

RUTLAND, VT – Earlier this year students in Rosalie Fox’s Introduction to Sociology course at the Community College of Vermont’s Rutland academic center partnered with the Vermont Police Canine Association on a service learning project to raise funds for the purchase of protective vests for Vermont police dogs. Students will present Bob Ryan, treasurer of the Vermont Police Canine Association, with a check for the money raised to date at 10:00 A.M. on May 2, in a ceremony being held at CCV Rutland. Donations will continue to be accepted until Memorial Day.

Over the course of the month-long In”vest” in K9’s Best project, students from two additional CCV Rutland classes – Fox’s Dimensions of Freedom course, and Duane Tompkins’s Introduction to Criminology class — became involved in the initiative. Fundraising events such as a benefit breakfast hosted by Genesis healthcare, a raffle for a donated, dog-print quilt, and significant contributions from community businesses such as Rutland Regional Medical Center and Wagatha’s Organic Dog Biscuits helped propel total donations to an amount exceeding that of the cost of a single canine vest, typically averaging around $1,200.

According to Fox, the money raised will be used to purchase a vest for a Vermont K9. Excess funds, Fox said, have been earmarked for the purchase of a new canine for Rutland City or training for the city’s current K9s.

Attending the event on Thursday will be CCV students, instructors and senior-level administrators, Rutland Mayor Chris Louras, and representatives from Rutland City Police, Vermont Police Canine Association, Genesis Healthcare, and other community supporters of the project.

http://vtdigger.org/2013/05/02/ccv-rutland-students-collect-over-2000-for-k9-vest-initiative/

(KUTV) A police dog is recovering at home in Cedar City after undergoing surgery for neck injuries sustained while assisting officers in an arrest.

Pajko, a 3-year-old Belgian Malinois, lost function of his legs after a man police were trying apprehend “slammed on top” of the dog, according to court charging documents.

“He’s a fantastic dog,” said Officer Jason Thomas, Pajko’s handler. “He actually worked with the SEAL Team Six.”

Thomas has only been Pajko’s handler for just over a year, but says their bond is strong.

“It’s hard to describe what that bond is between a K-9 handler and that working dog; it’s special,” Thomas said. “We put our lives in their hands.”

Merrill Orlando Rust, 48, is charged with causing injury to a police service dog, a third-degree felony, and other charges including possession of marijuana, drug paraphernalia, possession of a firearm by a restricted person and failure to obey police commands.

Cedar City Police officers were dispatched around 4:30 p.m. Thursday to check on Rust, who was reported to be suicidal. Officers found his car near a water tank on Nichols Canyon Road, located in the foothills east of town.

“While officers were attempting to establish communication with Rust, he fired a single gunshot into the air,” Sgt. Jimmy Roden wrote in a statement about the incident. “Rust then hiked deeper into the foothills east of the water tank.”

Several hours later, as the day grew dark, Rust walked towards police, gun in hand and refused commands to drop the gun and stop, according to police.

“We followed Merrill [Rust] for about 50 yards and he threw the gun in the sage brush and continued walking away from us,” reads the probable cause statement. “Officer Thomas deployed his service dog Pajko, to stop Merrill.”

The court document goes on to say that Pajko did his job and hit Rust in the back, causing him to fall. But that Rust then “turned and slammed on top of Pajko which caused Pajko to disengage due to extreme injury.”

“Pajko yelped,” Officer Thomas recalls. “He wasn’t able to coordinate his legs; he was chewing on his front paws really bad.”

As officers tried to evaluate Pajko’s injuries, Thomas says Rust assaulted the dog again, causing further injury.

Officers took Pajko to Las Vegas for treatment. Doctors found two herniated disks in his neck and operated Saturday. The surgery was successful and Pajko is able to walk again but is currently under heavy sedation to help him recover.

“Right now he’s not guaranteed to come back,” Thomas said of Pajko returning to police service. “We’re extremely hopeful and the surgery was successful but even the veterinarian is still: ‘It could go either way.’”

To help with Pajko’s medical expenses and other costs associated with his recovery, the group Friends of Iron County Police K9 is accepting donations. Here is a link to the group’s Facebook page:https://www.facebook.com/FriendsOfIronCountyK9s

​http://www.kutv.com/news/top-stories/stories/vid_4784.shtml

EDMOND — Police are investigating the possibility that a faulty vehicle air conditioner caused the death of a beloved Edmond K-9 officer.

“It is with great sadness that we must report the death of one of our beloved K-9 dogs, Justice,” said Edmond Police Department spokeswoman Jenny Monroe.

Monday afternoon, Justice’s handler found him lethargic in the back of the handler’s squad car, Monroe said. He was rushed to the vet where he later died, Monroe said.

It appears Justice overheated, Monroe said.

Officers were inspecting the vehicle’s air conditioner unit to help determine what contributed to the cause of his death, Monroe said. The vehicle was running with the AC left on during the time Justice was in the vehicle.

Justice was primarily used as a single purpose, non-aggressive dog within the Edmond Public Schools to detect illegal narcotics, Monroe said.

In September 2010, The Edmond Sun reported the story of how Justice came to the Edmond Police Department from the city’s Animal Welfare Center. He was a stray black Labrador brought into the shelter. A police officer told Edmond Animal Welfare Officer Michael Reynolds the Police Department was looking for a suitable dog for its K-9 division.

One day, Reynolds was in the shelter, looking among the dogs for a candidate, a dog possessing a lot of energy and drive. He came to a group of three labs. One of them, the black Labrador, was different.

“There was just something about him, his actions,” Reynolds said. “He acted like he was bored and wanted to go out and play.”

Reynolds gave Edmond’s K-9 division a call and the dog, who would be named Justice, began a new life, a journey toward becoming a police dog. Justice was paired with School Resource Officer Dack Pearson, who said man and dog went through an initial pre-training bonding period that included a lot of playtime.

Justice was certified by the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics to find marijuana, cocaine, meth and heroin. Several times due to his ability to find drugs Justice made headlines.

​http://www.edmondsun.com/local/x508490129/Police-announces-death-of-beloved-K9-Justice

Narcotics investigators with the Boone Police Department and the Ashe County Sheriff’s Office ended a large-scale drug investigation Tuesday evening.

In a separate case, another suspect was arrested in connection with illegal possession of marijuana. The large-scale drug investigation ended early Tuesday evening when a suspect was arrested during a counter-drug operation in Boone.

Officers had learned earlier that a methamphetamine trafficker from the Atlanta area was making a large delivery to a location in Boone, according to the Boone Police Department.

Officers identified the suspect as Mauricio “Mario” Baltazar, 20, of  5277 Ahyoka Drive Lake City, Ga.    The agencies planned a covert counter-drug operation to intercept the methamphetamine shipment and arrest the suspect.

The agencies were assisted by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, according to the Police Department.

During the operation, Boone Police K-9 Maus and her handler Master Police Officer J. Warren were also involved.    Maus was used to search the suspect’s vehicle. Maus alerted officers to the presence of drugs inside the vehicle, and approximately one-half pound of crystal methamphetamine was seized.    This amount of methamphetamine has a street value of $22,000, police said.

Baltazar was charged with two counts of trafficking in methamphetamine and is currently in the Watauga County Jail under a $75,000 bond. He is scheduled to appear in court on May 28.    “This operation represents the very core mission of our narcotics unit. The goal of every drug case we investigate is to identify and arrest the individuals responsible for importing illegal drugs into our town,” said Police Chief Dana Crawford.

In a separate case, Boone officers also involved Warren and Maus in another investigation that day. Officer R. Blevins conducted a traffic stop for a vehicle for speeding and an equipment violation.

The driver was identified as Jerry Dean Osborne, 20, of 185 Village Drive, Apartment 1410, Wilkesboro.

Blevins suspected a controlled substance was involved. He called Warren and Maus to the scene to assist.

Maus led officers to search the trunk of the vehicle, which revealed approximately one-half pound of marijuana and a book bag containing more than $20,000.

Narcotics investigators were called to the scene and took over the investigation.

After an interview with the suspect, narcotics investigators said they have reason to believe the suspect was in Boone to distribute marijuana.

Investigators also believe the money was the proceeds of illegal drug sales, police said.

Osborne was arrested and charged with the felony possession with intent to sell and deliver marijuana, felony manufacture of marijuana by packaging and felony maintaining a vehicle to keep a controlled substance.    Osborne  was taken to the Watauga County Jail under a $3,000 bond.

“Master Police Officer Warren and K9 Maus were crucial in both of these situations. Dogs like Maus are so beneficial to law enforcement. MPO Warren and K9 Maus are a great team and they serve our citizens well. They both did a fantastic job during these cases,” said Sgt. Chris Hatton.

If anyone has information about the location of illegal drugs, but wants to remain anonymous, they can call Crimestoppers.

Crimestoppers can be reached 24 hours a day at (828) 268-6959.

Story from: http://www2.wataugademocrat.com/News/story/Boone-law-enforcement-ends-large-scale-drug-investigation-id-011279

After eight years of “distinguished service,” in the words of Brunswick Police Sergeant and K-9 Unite Supervisor Jon Page, Brunswick police K-9 Blackjack has retired.

And while Blackjack begins his retirement with his handler, Officer Mark Luciano, his successor has seemingly picked up right where Blackjack left off.

“He began two weeks ago and I think he has made five arrests, so he is obviously good,” said Brunswick Police Chief Carl Deforest.

Luciano was selected to be Nico’s handler and the department’s newest employee completed training. on April 5.

The K-9 team was certified by the state of Ohio for patrol and narcotics work, Page explained.

“K9 Nico will perform numerous police functions, to include drug searches, crowd control, search and apprehension of fleeing individuals, tracking of lost persons, building searches and recovery of evidence from crimes,” Page said.

Nico, a 1-year-old, 65-pound Belgian Malinois, was born in Holland and imported to Shallow Creek Kennels in Pennsylvania where the team training took place, Page said.

Luciano and Nico will be working the department’s 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. shift, Page said, as well as being available for pre-scheduled community events, Page said, noting that requests for further information or for the teams attendance at community events should be directed to Page at 330-225-9111.

Deforest said the department has high expectations for Nico, as it did for Blackjack.

“They (Blackjack and Luciano) do a great job arresting drug violators and locating suspects and items through searches,” the chief said. “The (new) team is off to a great start.”

He added that the department’s K-9 program has also provided an opportunity to share resources with Brunswick Hill Police.

“We recently entered into an agreement that allows for us to use their canine vehicle for Officer Luciano and Nico, as Brunswick Hills Police had limited application or use for the specialized vehicle after disbanding their canine program last year,” Deforest said. “This is an excellent example of the teamwork and effort to do what is best for both communities and I appreciate the township trustees and Chief Mackay’s willingness to enter into such an agreement.”

Story provided by: http://www.cleveland.com/brunswick/index.ssf/2013/04/brunswicks_newest_k-9_officer.html