Training scheduled for Dennison’s next K9 crimefighter
DENNISON (WJER) (July 27, 2022) – The village’s new police dog could be sniffing out drugs and chasing down suspects by the end of September.
Police Chief Todd Beeman says Patrolman Josh Newman is taking over the department’s K9 program and has selected a dog named Rico as his partner.
“He’s a Belgian Malinois. He’s about a year and a half old, and he was imported from Holland.”
Certification training for this crimefighting duo is scheduled to begin on August 15th and takes about six weeks to complete. The cost to acquire and train Rico was over $15,000 although Beeman says only $500 is coming from the department’s K9 fund.
“There was a grant that was received for $7,500, and that was through the AKC K9 Reunite Program, and then there was also an anonymous donor that donated $7,500.”
Dennison has been without a K9 unit since early June. That’s when officials approved an early retirement for Rico’s predecessor, Eddy Bronco. He remains in the care of the department’s former K9 handler, Stephen Feck, who stepped down because of health issues.