Sheriff unleashes drug-sniffing dogs, Tango and Kash

One of new police canines is believed to be only law-enforcement drug dog in U.S. trained to detect prescription narcotics.

Warren County deputies (from left) Kelly Hammonds with his new dog Tango and Brian Lewis with his new dog Kash, show off their drug-sniffing dogs Friday, Dec. 4, during a news conference at the sheriff’s office in Lebanon.

Staff photo by Pat Auckerman Warren County deputies (from left) Kelly Hammonds with his new dog Tango and Brian Lewis with his new dog Kash, show off their drug-sniffing dogs Friday, Dec. 4, during a news conference at the sheriff’s office in Lebanon.

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By Ed Richter, Staff Writer Updated 10:32 AM Saturday, December 5, 2009

LEBANON — Warren County’s newest team of canines were unleashed on drug crime Friday, Dec. 4.

The Warren County Sheriff’s Office and the county’s Drug Task Force introduced Tango and Kash, who went into service this week after receiving their certifications.

John Burke, drug task force commander, said Kash is believed to be the only law enforcement drug dog in the nation trained to detect not only prescription drugs, such as Xanax, but also in detecting U.S. currency.

“This is new ground and we’re very excited about it,” Burke said.

Of the 1,500 dogs in the U.S. Customs Service, Burke said none can sniff out prescription narcotics. He did say there were some private companies that have similarly trained dogs.

Kash is certified to detect illicit drugs by the North American Police Dog Association and has been trained to detect prescription drugs in pill form as well as the pure product.

Kash, a Belgian malinois who answers to commands in Dutch, would be used in consent searches and executing search warrants, Burke said.

The need for a dog to be able to detect prescription drugs is rising as pharmaceutical drug trafficking is growing, Burke said.

The county’s other new canine, a German shepherd named Tango, is trained as a law enforcement dog and as a tracker as well to detect illicit drugs.

Each of the specially trained dogs cost about $5,000 to $8,000 and were paid for through asset forfeitures and grants from the National Association of Drug Diversion Investigators. No county funds were used to purchase the dogs, said Burke and Warren County Sheriff Larry Sims.

Sims noted the county’s other dog, Kilo has been in service for three years. He said the cost to maintain the black Labrador is about $600 a year, and the county receives free services from a local veterinarian.

Sims noted Kilo has helped to seize assets in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

“As an agency, we’re excited about this,” Sims said.

Contact this reporter at  (513) 696-4504 or erichter@coxohio.com.

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