Barton County Sheriff's Office welcomes new K9 and handler

The Barton County Sheriff’s Office has welcomed a new K9 and handler.

Deputy Sheriff Nicholas Katzenmeier and his new partner 18-month-old Belgian-Malinois Maxx attended training in Little Rock, Arkansas and were certified in drug detection, tracking, item searches and patrol work. They are assigned to the patrol division of the Sheriff’s Office.

Total costs for training and equipment are approximately $12,000. No tax dollars were used for this purchase.

"The sheriff’s office routinely seizes money and other assets from drug dealers. This money is put into a special account to be used for non-budgeted items. In essence, local drug dealers paid for our K9," said Sheriff Brian Bellendir.

In addition to Maxx, Detective Adam Hales still maintains Kia as a working drug detection dog. This arrangement allows for more coverage and dogs being assigned to two different divisions of the Sheriff’s Office.