Related Articles
Died – 9/4/22
Handler – Cpl. Dave Wilkins
Retired Crown Point police K-9 dies
A retired K-9 police officer who served the citizens of Crown Point for nearly a decade has died, city officials said. K-9 “Ace” left the force in 2020 after being diagnosed with arthritis in his spine. His final ride with his handler, Cpl. Dave Wilkins, was Sunday.”Our officers are sad to see another respected K-9 pass this year. We hope K-9 Ace finds peace and is reunited with his fellow officers, K-9 Radar and K-9 Buddy,” said Crown Point Police Chief Ryan Patrick. “Our thoughts are with Cpl. Wilkins and his family during this difficult time.” Police said Wilkins and Ace were partners for eight years and together pursued bad guys, sniffed out illegal drugs and worked to protect their fellow officers. Ace also was active in the community outside his police duties. He met local students learning about the police department on school field trips and participated in demonstrations at the Crown Point Police Youth Camp. When off-duty, Ace loved spending time with Wilkins’ daughter. They were inseparable, often going on walks and playing ball, officials said. “Ace had a special way of tilting his head when we would talk to him. It was his way of letting everyone know he was listening to us talk,” said Sgt. Jeff Eldridge. Wilkins and Ace received Crown Point’s Life Saving Award in 2014 for helping find a suicidal woman who went out on foot during a winter storm. They also were recognized that year by the American Police Canine Association for tracking robbery suspects and locating stolen money.”Ace was the last of the three K-9s who joined the department beginning in 2008. There was Buddy, then Radar and Ace followed shortly after. It is the end of a truly great era of K-9s in Crown Point,” said Eldrige, the department’s K-9 supervisor.
