Device-Sniffing K9 To Help Delco Officials Catch Child Predators

MEDIA, PA – Delaware County has a new member of its Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. But she's a bit fuzzier than most of the members.

Delaware County District Attorney Jack Whelan and Special Agent in Charge Marlon Miller of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations welcomed 2-year-old Labrador retriever Charlie to the ICAC task force on Wednesday, Sept. 13.

Charlie is the first and only electronic-detection forensic K9 in Pennsylvania and one of fewer than two dozen across the country, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

As an electronic-detection K9, Charlie has been trained to track the distinct chemical smell of small electronics that humans are not able to detect, according to the District Attorney's office.

Charlie is capable of finding the exact location of electronic devices, as well as where electronics dives have been, the DA's office said.

After the announcement, Charlie gave a demonstration of her unique skills where she located a flash drive that detectives hid in the county building earlier in the day. Her successful mission was met with a round of applause. And she was rewarded with her favorite tennis ball.

Officials said that storage devices, such as flash drives, hard drives, and memory cards, get smaller, locating such devices during child pornography investigations grows increasingly difficult.

Luckily, Delco authorities have Charlie to help them find potentially child-porn-bearing devices.

“Charlie is a great addition to our ICAC team in their daily efforts to bring predators to justice,” Whelan said. “In Delaware County, we are constantly looking at how we can advance our abilities and forensic capabilities to catch predators. Amazingly, Charlie can find elements of a crime that even the most seasoned investigator can miss, which are essential for prosecution.”

Charlie just recently finished a two-week long training in Ohio with her handler, Nat Evans, a forensics analyst in the Delaware County Criminal Investigation Division (CID), according to the DA's office. She was trained by Gerald Azzi of Azzi International Service for Dogs in Delaware County, Ohio. The dogs he trains come from a company called TK Hot Retrievers in Idaho, the DA's office said.

“We are excited to introduce Charlie the first and only ICAC electronic-detection K9 in the state of Pennsylvania," Miller said. "Charlie has the ability to detect objects that would be impossible to find. We are excited to have her on the team and look forward to her contributions in helping bring predators to justice."

So do not be fooled by Charlie's cuteness. She is a trained crime fighter who will be out in the county helping to America's youth against child predators.

Image via Delaware County District Attorney