The Greene County Sheriff’s office received a top award for its K-9 Unit.
German Shepherd Leo and his handler, Chief Deputy Sheriff Jack Williams won the 2014 Narcotics Case of the First Half Award from the United States Police Canine Association. The award goes to a K-9 from Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. The award is given bi-annually.
The case that was chosen was one of Leo’s first drug busts in January of 2014. Williams states that they received a phone call from a post office in Des Moines in which they scanned a package that had six pounds of marijuana in it. The package was suppose to be delivered to Scranton.
Williams let the package go through, under surveillance. A female picked up the package and Williams stopped the vehicle for speeding. The woman denied that there were drugs in the vehicle. Leo then indicated the presence of drugs in the back of the vehicle. She told Williams that the package was meant for someone else.
“The person that had possession (the female) of it, actually throughout the investigation didn’t know what they were picking up. (It was) just being delivered to a house (in Scranton) and the guy we eventually got it to had it mailed to this residence in hoping that he would be there as soon as they dropped it off so he could just grab it off the porch and go.”
Instead, Williams notes that they had her contact the individual and told him to be at the Casey’s General Store on Lincoln Way and she added that law enforcement knows about the package. The Perry suspect still went through with the deal and was later arrested and charged with a felony for intent to deliver while the female wasn’t charged with any wrongdoing.
This is the first such award for the Sheriff’s office and Williams notes it’s pretty important when a small County can receive a canine award since they were up against agencies in bigger cities and along Interstates.
Leo has helped to take over 14 pounds of marijuana, 5.5 ounces of crystal methamphetamine and 3.3 grams of cocaine in 2014.