Cape Town – Deacon, a police dog at the SAPS K9 unit in Humansdorp, was brutally killed while protecting his handler during an arrest of a housebreaking suspect.
The suspect, 19, appeared at the Humansdorp Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday on three charges, including the killing Deacon.
Police said Deacon, who joined the crime-fighting team in 2022, was with his handler Sergeant Pat Le Grange when they responded to a housebreaking in the St Francis Bay Area on Monday morning.
According to police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu the suspect/s entered dense bushes in the area and Sergeant Le Grange and Deacon were in pursuit.
“When warnings to exit the bush had failed, the duo crawled into the thicket, with Deacon leading the way on a long leash.
“At some point, the handler heard a loud scream and hastened to get to his dog,” said Naidu.
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She said as Sergent Le Grange stood up, the suspect lunged at him with a knife and Deacon, who had already been stabbed got up to protect his handler, enabling him to make an arrest.
Naidu said Deacon was bleeding profusely and was rushed to a nearby vet where he suffered a cardiac arrest and died.
The teenager appeared in the Humansdorp Magistrates court and was charged with housebreaking, an attack on a police official and malicious damage to property, for the death of Deacon.
Naidu said police dogs have proved to be pivotal to the success of operations in a multitude of cases whereby their handlers would never have been successful on their own.
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Compiled by Olwethu Mpeshe
