LAWRENCE — With 70 percent of the city's arrests related to illegal drugs, police have long wanted a dog specially trained to only detect narcotics. But finding the thousands of dollars needed to buy such a specific dog was unheard of with Lawrence's lean budget — until now.
Drug dealers actually paid for Rocky, a 2-1/2-year-old black Labrador, who will be trained as the Police Department's first narcotics canine. The Police Department used $4,900 in money seized during drug investigations to buy Rocky from a Connecticut firm that specializes in police and service dogs.
Born in Mexico, the 50-pound dog has a friendly personality and is quickly warming up to his new handler, Officer Charles Saindon.
Rocky will be trained to detect the "Big 3" — heroin, cocaine and marijuana. Detectives are also hoping the dog will help them sniff out secret drug hides they encounter in apartments, homes and cars.
The dog's food, Science Diet, is donated to the Police Department. His training, provided by the state, is also free, and he's receiving no-cost routine care at Wignall Animal Hospital in Dracut.
"I love it," police Chief John Romero said. "I think it's fitting the money came right from drug dealers themselves. ... And I'll be the first to admit we have drugs in the city. We need to be aggressive in addressing that."
Over the years, police have had other dogs, including Micha, a German shepherd now handled by Officer Thaddeus Czarnecki. But those dogs were the more traditional type of police dog, trained to track suspects, search for missing people and control crowds.
This is the first time the department has a dog just to detect drugs, Romero said.
Rocky is about to undergo an intense eight weeks of drug training with the Massachusetts State Police. Then, once he's on the street, Saindon and Rocky will continue training, roughly two days per month, to keep the dog's senses keen and skills as sharp as possible.
"The more the dog works, the more he'll find," said Saindon, a South Lawrence native who has worked as a Lawrence patrolman for five years.
According to Lawrence police statistics, there will be plenty for Rocky to do in Lawrence. Last year, of the roughly 5,000 arrests made by city police, about 3,500 had a drug component, said John Reynolds, the department's director of crime analysis.
Now, when police officers need a drug-sniffing dog, they rely on state police dogs. But once Rocky is trained, the department's own dog will be just minutes away.
Sgt. Mark Ciccarelli, a veteran drug detective, described the dog as "invaluable" to detective work. He hopes the canine will find what the detectives miss. The dogs are also an extremely powerful tool when a warrant is obtained and an apartment or home is searched.
"We're able to locate so much more with the dog," Ciccarelli said.
People have gotten crafty about hiding drugs in cars and homes. Detectives have found drugs stashed in car airbags and headrests, and more recently found 15 kilos tucked under the seat of a car. They have also found drugs hidden in secret drawers inside a bedroom bureau.
Rocky will live with Saindon and his family. The dog travels in a marked cruiser retrofitted with a cage and a climate-control system to keep him cool. He'll be ready to work alongside officers in November.
