Pasco Sheriff's Office Adds K9s To Highway Interdiction Team

PASCO COUNTY, FL - Pasco Sheriff's Office's K9 Unit is expanding once again.

They’ve added four new K9 teams to its Highway Interdiction Team (or HIT). This specialized unit is responsible for disrupting the flow of narcotics traveling through the county.

All four K9s passed their narcotics detection certifications late last week after eight weeks of training, and hit the road as working teams this weekend.

All four dogs are single-purpose K9s, concentrating on finding illegal drugs during traffic stops. They come from Europe and are selected based on their drive, personality and how they compliment their handlers, as all of PSO's K9s live at home with their handlers when they're not working. This newest group of K9s includes three males and one female.

As with all of PSO’s K9s, the money to purchase, train and equip these new teams was made possible by donations from the community.

K9s assist deputies in a variety of ways, from locating those who are missing, to detecting dangerous narcotics. These newest additions brings PSO to a total of 37 working dogs, all of which were paid for by community donations.

Check out more info on each of the new teams below:

K9 Luca & Dep. Nixon
K9 Luca was born in Hungary in March 3, 2019. She is a Belgian Malinois/German Shepherd cross. Her partner is Dep. Nixon, who joined PSO in 2013 and has been assigned to patrol and Selective Traffic Enforcement before his current assignment to HIT.

K9 Flash & Dep. Kasperitis
K9 Flash is a Belgian Malinois born in Croatia on Feb. 14, 2019. He joins his partner, Dep. Kasperitis, as a new member of HIT. Dep. Kasperitis has worked with PSO for three years, as part of patrol. He also served in the U.S. Marine Corps, deploying twice during Operation Enduring Freedom.

K9 Honor & Dep. Dunn
K9 Honor is a Belgian Malinois/German Shepherd cross born in Hungary in Aug. 3, 2019. His partner is Dep. Dunn, who joined PSO in 2015. He was assigned to patrol and was a field training officer prior to joining HIT. He also served in the U.S. Marine Corps.

K9 Karma & Dep. Lane
K9 Karma is a Belgian Malinois/German Shepherd cross and was born in Hungary on Sept. 26, 2019. His partner is Dep. Lane, who joined PSO in 2016. Dep. Lane was assigned to HIT prior to his partnership with K9 Karma.