CEDAR CITY, Utah - After only about three months on the job, the Cedar City Police Department’s newest K9 helped police get 14 pounds of methamphetamine off the streets.
The seizure happened Thursday night. Utah Highway Patrol called in Duco, the rookie K9, to help during a traffic stop. Cedar City Police Officer Clint Pollock said Duco locked onto the scent.
“He alerted and indicated that there was drug odor in the vehicle,” Pollock said.
Duco joined the Cedar City police department in September 2014. In December, Pollock and Duco completed narcotics detection training. Pollock said the find shows them that investment paid off.
“We go through that training process, of obedience, as well as the scent memorization,” Pollock said. “So from when I initially got him, we’ve made leaps and bounds.”
The Utah Highway Patrol wouldn’t comment specifically on the drug arrest, as they say it’s part of an ongoing investigation. But Pollock said the expertise Duco contributed is invaluable, something police can’t do without K9 units.
“[They are] typically hiding them in deep compartments that the officer isn’t going to dig as deep if they don’t have the dog’s assistance to give them that surety that there’s drug odor in the vehicle,” Pollock said.
