WESTON, Wis. (WSAU) - Everest Metro Police officially introduced their new K9 Officer to the force today.
His name is Aron, which is Hebrew for Mountain of Strength, something that officer Matt Krembs was keen to have on his side. "I wanted to get a big, strong German Shepherd with a heart of gold." Aron is a two year old dog purchased from the Vohne Liche kennels in Indiana. Krembs and Aron just completed a 6 week training course at the kennels in order to learn about each other and get ready for duty in Marathon County.
Aron is a dual purpose dog, able to track both illegal narcotics as well as people, and does have some experience and training in bite-work to support officers. He's already seen some deployments, according to Krembs. "His first shift was on Monday and he did a narcotics sniff in Wausau and helped track two robbery suspects in Weston." Aron was able to locate some material evidence in the robbery case.
Aron was paid for through community grants, much like his predecessor Lord who is now officially retired from theforce. Brian Gumness from the BA and Esther Greenheck Foundation says they were happy to help with part of that funding. "The importance is to have whatever tools we can get to help fight drug trafficking in the area and the other things that they provide the department." More funding came from the K9 4 Cops group.
Outgoing K9 Officer Lord will remain with his handler, Sergeant Rob Dickerson.