PMB police dog, Sky was shot and killed by a fleeing suspect on Friday, 7 November.
At about 2.15am, Town Hill police responded to a housebreaking in Town Bush Road, Chase Valley. The house had been ransacked and the television was stolen.
The Townhill police requested assistance from the Pietermaritzburg K9 Unit to search for the suspects. Constable Eugene Rautenbach and his police dog, Sky responded and attended to the crime scene. While heading towards Town Bush Road along the river bank, Rautenbach noticed the suspects running down the road towards the trees.
He instructed the suspects to surrender. When they failed to obey his order he released his dog. The dog entered under the low hanging branches of the tree, where Rautenbach lost sight of him and then heard a gunshot.
As the police officer approached the area he found his dog with a gunshot wound. Sky died at the scene.
The suspect was not found. Town Hill police are still investigating the case of housebreaking and theft.
Sky, a 5-year-old Belgium Shepard Malinois had been working as a police dog since 2012, and had apprehended 10 suspects who committed various serious crimes in the Midlands area. He was also utilized in searching for explosives at many venues for the safe keeping of VIP’s and attending to complaints of bomb scares and suspicious parcels.
The Pietermaritzburg K9 Unit is making a plea to the public for a donation of suitable dogs to be trained. Captain Marlin Smith can be contacted on 082 558 1391 or 033 387 9668.
