He had the ability to make suspects in criminal cases stop resisting arrest when nothing else would, even a taser. And he possessed the strength to endure several city council meetings, where he was doted on by city officials.
On Tuesday, the Cedar City Police Department announced law enforcement K-9 Duco died from natural causes after more than seven years serving on the force. St. George News spoke with two officers who worked side-by-side with the Belgian Malinois, who quickly became a community favorite at police-sponsored community events.
Duco joined the Cedar City Police Department in 2015, working with Lt. Clint Pollock. In March of that year, the Utah Highway Patrol requested assistance from a K-9 officer and 14 pounds of methamphetamine was removed from Interstate 15 as a result. While this was his first "bust," hundreds of pounds of drugs would follow. Pollock explained that many times an officer can become suspicious when a suspect has malfunctioning lights, appears intoxicated or is jittery when questioned. Still, other suspected criminals are not anxious, they have travel plans and they do not appear intoxicated.