VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – The Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office is welcoming a new member: a drug-detecting K9 named Pablo.
Pablo is 17 months old and was born in the Netherlands.
His handler is Master Deputy Anthony Natalzia who spent three-and-a-half months training Pablo, his first K9 to train from the beginning of a dog’s time with the VBSO.
According to the VBSO, Pablo earned his Virginia Police Work Dog Association certification in early September and has completed more than a dozen operational searches. His primary purpose will be working alongside Master Deputy Natalzia to screen the Virginia Beach Correctional Center and other public areas for the presence of drugs, including cocaine, heroin, methamphetamines, and ecstasy. Pablo was not trained to detect marijuana due to the legalization of the substance in Virginia.
The VBSO K9 Unit has two additional K9s: K9 Gaston, a 6-year-old German Shepherd certified in detecting explosives, and K9 Candy, a 10-year-old German Shepherd certified in detecting narcotics. K9 Candy will likely retire in the next year. She is the only VBSO K9 certified in detecting marijuana.
“The Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office K9 Unit is an extremely important tool in our mission to protect the citizens of Virginia Beach. Our K9s are also cherished members of the Sheriff’s Office family,” said Sheriff Ken Stolle.
