Community celebrates life of K-9 Santos, killed in line of duty
The Wake County Sheriff's Office says K-9 Santos played an integral role in keeping the community safe and his loss has left a profound impact.
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The Wake County Sheriff’s Office says K-9 Santos played an integral role in keeping the community safe and his loss has left a profound impact.
“He's just an extended member of the family. When it was time to go to work, he knew how to roll his sleeves up like everybody else and get out and do the job,” Sheriff Willie Rowe said. “He died doing what he does best. That's serving Wake County.”
Santos joined the sheriff’s office in 2016, making him the longest serving K-9 there.
“In the blink of an eye, my heart was broken,” Santos’ handler Maria Fuentes said tearfully, while reading his eulogy. She was there the night he died.
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Sgt. Jason Bordeaux said handlers and their K-9s have a special bond.
“We go to work, they're with us. We go home, they're with us. 24 hours a day, we're with the dog,” he said.
Fuentes said she was proud of the work she accomplished with Santos. “Santos and I were a great team,” she said.
To quality for K-9 duty, dogs go through a rigorous 16-week training program, Bordeaux said.
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