K9 Biko – Troup County, Georgia

Died – 2/8/19
Handler – Lt. Nathan Taylor

K9 Biko died

The Troup County Sheriff’s Office is mourning the loss of a beloved K-9 officer to illness. K-9 Biko joined the service when he was just 2 years old in January of 2010. After training for 13 weeks, the Dutch Shepherd joined his handler Lt. Nathan Taylor to keep the county safe. Officials say Biko was responsible for apprehending multiple suspects, finding lost and missing persons, and seizing millions of dollars in illegal narcotics and drugs. After eight years, Biko began to suffer from multiple medical issues. Biko retired on Jan. 18. Just a few weeks later, he died at his handler’s home due to his medical conditions. “We are certainly grateful for the over 8 years of service Biko gave to the Troup County Sheriff’s Office assisting in the fight against illegal drugs and the recovery of lost and missing persons,” Troup County Sheriff James Woodruff said in a statement. Woodruff said Biko would be “he will be missed by all.”

Submitted By Jim Cortina

James A. Cortina has been involved with police dogs since 1972 and currently on the Board of Directors for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Jim has been appointed as Treasurer since its inception in 1991. Jim is one of the charter members of the C.P.W.D.A. organization. Since 1975 he has been a certified professional dog trainer and received his Master Trainer Certification in 1985. During his career he has provided armed K-9 strike crowd control for security agencies in Connecticut and out of state security companies. In conjunction with other members of the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Board of Directors, he helped to draft Connecticut Statute 53-247(e) "Intentional Injury or Killing of Police K-9" which was passed by the Senate in 1993 and also assisted in implementing the prestigious Daniel Wasson Memorial K-9 Award in 1992. In 1993 he helped coordinate the North American Police Work Dog Association Nationals in New London, Connecticut. He was appointed Training Director for the New London County Work Dog Association from 1985-1987. He performed decoy work for Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. in police K-9 demonstrations, trained several local police department canines, and coordinated training workshops for out-of-state police departments. He participated in the United States Police K-9 Association Trials in Croton on Hudson, New York in 1985 as a decoy. He is an avid photographer and received photography awards in 1989, 1990, and 1991 and currently takes photographs for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc.