New Bomb-Sniffing K-9 Deputy Joins DuPage Sheriff's Team

DUPAGE COUNTY, IL -- The DuPage County Sheriff's Office recently introduced its newest deputy, a K-9 who is trained to sniff out over 250 different types of explosives. Nitro is a three-year-old German Shepherd-Belgian Malinois mix who has been living and training with his partner, Deputy Frank Carragher.

Nitro and Carragher will train closely with K-9 Deputy Jewel and her Deputy Ken Diebert, so they can be ready when Jewel and Diebert retire in early 2020. Nitro will get to debut his skills alongside other K-9s during a safety sweep of Medinah Country Club prior to the Western Golf Association Open Championship.

In a statement, DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick said, "[Nitro] will proactively seek out bombs and guns. We’ll use it for those acts of violence but the biggest value of a bomb dog is what it prevents."

The newest K-9 deputy will stay silent and point if a bomb is detected, which helps decrease the likelihood of a bomb being detonated in error.

Nitro will also be trained to help detect drugs and cadavers, making him an important tool in fighting opioid use, Mendrick added.

Welcome aboard, Nitro!