CT State Police mourns death of second police dog this week

Connecticut State Police announced late Saturday that police are mourning the death of police dog Elmer. This is the second death of a police dog announced this week.

Elmer was assigned to Detective David Collins of the Fire & Explosion Investigation Unit, according to state police. The dog was 6 years old and was “laid to rest” on Saturday, July 6, due to medical complications.

Also this week, the Connecticut State Police mourned the recent death of their beloved police dog, Drago, who served in Troop C in Tolland.

Drago was assigned to Trooper Kyle Kaelberer of Troop C; he died Thursday, also due to medical complications, according to state police.

Collins and K-9 Elmer completed the Connecticut State Police’s 212th Accelerant Detection Course in the fall of 2020 and “served the state for three years,” according to state police.

“During his career, K-9 Elmer traveled throughout the state to assist at numerous fire scenes. He worked with our local, state and federal partners to recover countless pieces of evidence,” state police said in a statement. “In addition, K-9 Elmer assisted in training fire inspectors and educating the public about fire safety. K-9 Elmer was loved by all and will be sorely missed.”

Kaelberer and Drago were graduates of the Connecticut State Police’s 201st Patrol Dog Class and the Connecticut State Police’s 219th Drug Detection Dog Class. The two also served together as members of the state police’s tactical unit, according to state police.

“During his career, K-9 Drago was able to locate countless wanted suspects and missing persons, as well as a large amount of illegal drugs,” state police said. “K-9 Drago was a beloved member of Troop C and had an immeasurable impact on the safety of the citizens of Tolland County, the State of Connecticut and the Connecticut State Police as a whole.”