Athens —
Benny, the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office K-9, has been sniffing out drug offenders for a few years now. Now the HCSO can proudly proclaim him “top dog.”
Last week, the black German Shepherd got a chance to show his stuff at a 4-day police training course at Hill College in Hillsboro.
Sheriff Ray Nutt reports that Dep. Kenny Collard, Benny’s handler, took the K-9 to the school for training and re-certification. After they were successful in that, it was time for a little contest.
According to Nutt, an area was set up where nine different amounts of drugs, including heroin, marijuana, cocaine, and methamphetamine were hidden. There were also blank areas where no narcotics had been hidden.
Facing competition from all over Texas, and as far away as Missouri, Benny went through the course, locating narcotics along the way. Benny located more of the hidden substances than any other dog in the passive alert category.
In a passive alert, the dog doesn’t paw or scratch at the spot where the drugs are located. He calmly sits down, and stares at it.
The 6-year-old K-9 has been with HCSO for his entire career. According to the department, he has assisted in the apprehension of numerous drug offenders, helping not only the Sheriff’s Office, but the Texas Department of Public Safety, and various municipal police departments.
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Benny the crime dog proves he’s the best
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Too close to home
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