Retired Acworth Police Dog Passes Away

A veteran K9 officer of the Acworth Police Department who retired from active service in 2011 has passed away, the department confirmed on Friday.

Bosco, a 14-year-old Belgian Malinois, was a member of the K-9 unit from 2002 to 2011. He and his handler, Officer Jason Larocque, had been partners since 2006. Following Bosco’s 2011 retirement, he remained in the Larocque home as a family pet.

“Bosco resided with Officer Larocque and his wife after his retirement from APD where he enjoyed a life of treats and being a part of the family,” the department wrote on its Facebook page.

Bosco and Larocque made numerous drug asset seizures during their time together. Larocque told Patch in 2011 that Bosco helped seize $14,000 in assets for the Kennesaw Police Department in 2010. That year in Acworth, Bosco was responsible for the seizure of roughly $11,000 in cash and cars. All told, Bosco brought in $50,000 a year in drug asset seizures.

Although Bosco was good at finding drugs, he loved to find people.

Bosco was able to put his nose to the ground to search for a woman who was attempting to commit suicide by overdosing on pills. Bosco was able to track the woman through a wooded area and locate her in time for doctors to save her life. The doctors later told Larocque that if it weren’t for Bosco, the woman would have surely died. For this action, Bosco was given a special award by the American Police Hall of Fame in Florida and was honored by the Acworth Police Department at the Jan 21, 2010 city council meeting.