An RCMP Police Dog Services team has located a man who fled from police following an attempted traffic stop in Sillikers, N.B.
On November 10, 2023, at approximately 1:30 a.m., members of the Blackville RCMP detachment attempted to stop a vehicle at a check stop to identify the driver. A police officer approached the vehicle to request that the driver roll the window down, and the driver fled the scene.
Police conducted patrols of the area and were able to locate the vehicle a short time later. As police approached the vehicle, the driver crashed into a ditch, jumped out of the vehicle, and fled into the woods. Due to concerns of possible impairment and injuries, as well as weather conditions and dropping temperatures, RCMP Police Dog Services was called to assist in locating the individual.
Sgt. Michel Litalien and police dog Klue arrived at the scene and began tracking a scent, which led them to locate and arrest the individual within 15 minutes.
The individual, a 46-year-old man from Sillikers, has since been released from custody, and is scheduled to appear in court at a later date.
"Our Police Dog Services teams are a crucial part of the work that we do each day," says Insp. Daniel Richardson, Officer in Charge of Specialized Policing Services for the New Brunswick RCMP. "We rely on these dogs and their handlers to provide investigative support to not only our RCMP units, but to our partner police and law enforcement agencies as well."
RCMP police dogs and their handlers go through extensive training for narcotics and explosives detection, search and rescue operations and locating missing persons, tracking suspects and searching crime scenes, VIP protection, and firearms detection.
If you are interested in learning more about RCMP police dogs, or how to become an RCMP police dog handler, please visit: https://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/policedogs-chienspoliciers/index-eng.htm