LAKE COUNTY, Ohio — Editor's note: the video in the player above is from a previous, unrelated story.
It was just last week that Deputy Brandon Savage and his new K-9 “Ryker” came out of training to begin working full-time on patrol for the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
It didn't take long for Ryker to make an impact.
According to Sgt. Samer Musleh, K-9 Ryker's work has helped lead to five drug-related arrests in his first three days on the job. Those arrests include:
- Tracking and helping capture without incident a suspect who fled into a heavily wooded area in Perry Township.
- Assisting in the identification of three grams of cocaine, which led to the arrest of a 36-year-old man in Painesville Township.
- Identifying two grams of red phosphorus methamphetamines on a 44-year-old woman in Perry Township.
- Identifying six grams of methamphetamines on a 19-year-old woman, a 20-year-old man, and a 50-year-old man in Painesville Township.
In addition to his police work, Ryker has been active in the community, interacting with people at events from National Night Out, to the Lake County Fair, and this past weekend at the Irish festival at the Fairgrounds. Deputy Savage and Ryker are expected to soon team up with K-9 “Sado” and Deputy Shane Hopp, with both K-9s specializing in illegal narcotics detection, article searches for evidence, tracking and suspect apprehension.
"K-9 Ryker has proven to be a valuable asset to the community in many ways," the Lake County Sheriff's Office said in a release, adding: "We look forward to a very successful career for both of our K-9 teams."