On Friday, February 27, the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office officially welcomed two new members to the agency’s K9 unit during a ceremony attended by friends, family and Sheriff’s Office personnel.
Canines Bak and Rek are the two newest members of the Sheriff’s Office K9 unit after completing nearly six months of intense training. The canines were obedience trained when the Sheriff’s Office acquired them; however they received additional training with their handlers on detection, tracking and apprehension. At the end of training, the teams were certified prior to being released, which took place Tuesday, February 17 in Jacksonville.
Canine Bak is teamed with Deputy Brian Lucas and Canine Rek is teamed with Deputy Archie Crews.
Modern law enforcement agencies rely heavily on their K9 teams. They perform a host of duties from public relations to detection and apprehension. They are highly effective at locating objects of evidentiary value, including narcotics and people.
“The K9 teams are a tremendous asset for the Sheriff’s Office,” Sheriff Mark Hunter said. “Ultimately, having a successful K9 program increases safety for our deputies and citizens of our community.”
Sheriff Mark Hunter “pins” Bak
K9 Rek gets “pinned”
Deputy Brian Lucas with Bak and Deputy Archie Crews with Rek
